


Lessons In Love

by StarvingLunatic



Series: Who We Are [3]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Babysitting, Dating, Domestic Fluff, F/F, Family, Family Bonding, Futanari, G!P, Light Angst, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Novella, Oral Sex, Role Reversal, Romance, Sex, Sibling Bonding, Sisters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2019-01-19
Packaged: 2019-09-19 12:55:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 56,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17002071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarvingLunatic/pseuds/StarvingLunatic
Summary: Join Emma and Regina on their journey to syncing. They get closer to each other, but also with other members of their family as they grow more comfortable with who they are.





	1. Guiding Light in a Fog

**Author's Note:**

> I don’t own these characters; Disney/ABC does.
> 
> Public Service Announcement: this is the next installment of my Who We Are series. This means it is an Omegaverse story, starring alpha!Emma and omega!Regina. What does that mean? Emma has a penis. This story has G!P, futa, or whatever you call it. There’s also quite a bit of sex in the story. So, if those things aren’t your cup of tea, then back away slowly. 
> 
> A/N: I would like to thank Kylie for being my beta on this. And as always, for updates on this story or any of my work, or just come say hi to me on [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/SL-Kassidy-482097488469386/).

 

Lessons In Love

1: Guiding Light in a Fog

“Can you just get out of the car?” Regina clutched the steering wheel so tightly the veins in her hands popped up. She needed to strangle something and it was better to do the car than her partner, or so she assumed anyway. Emma was being childish and refused to get out of the car now that they pulled up to the doctor’s office.

“I don’t need to go to a doctor now that I think about it. I’m good. We should go back home,” Emma replied, tapping the dashboard repeatedly.

Regina shook her head. “We’re not going back home. We’ve put this off long enough. You need to get a check up.” She wanted to do this after Emma had her rut, but then her heat showed up ridiculously early. Now, she was certain they would sync the next time one of them went into anything and she did not know what to expect with that. Added in, she believed they needed to understand what those beta drugs might have done to Emma since they stopped her from having a rut until a couple of weeks ago.

“I don’t need a check up. I feel fine and I’ve been fine for almost fifteen years. It’s okay,” Emma said, folding her arms across her chest.

Regina resisted the urge to rub her temples. She did not want to have this argument again, but apparently they were having this argument again. _I didn’t repeat things this much under the Curse when time stood still_. “It’s not okay. You just had a rut for the first time. You have to know those drugs did something to your body and we should find out as soon as possible.”

With a frown, Emma threw up her hands. “What, I work perfectly fine. I mean, we got Henry, don’t we?”

Regina offered Emma a deadpan look for her troubles and kept an unkind remark to herself. What an alpha thing to think! She got an omega pregnant, so everything must be all right. She took a deep breath to keep her cool and try to get Emma to do the right thing. _If I have to do this again after this, I’m just using magic. I’d rather deal with the fallout of that than this ever again_.

“Yes, we have Henry, but you also just had a rut for the first time. Your body could be changing right before us and we have no idea. Who knows what could be happening with you as we speak? What if you go into withdrawal? What if there are side effects we don’t even know about? Nor do we know what to expect happen to you if there are side effects? Beyond that, I’m sure you know we’ll more than likely sync our mating time and neither of us knows what to expect for that,” Regina said, having to repeat herself for the umpteenth time. She made these arguments to get Emma to agree to the doctor’s appointment, she made these arguments to get Emma out of bed this morning, she made these arguments to get Emma into the car not even twenty minutes ago, and here she was making them again.

Emma had the nerve to groan, like this was a burden for her. “But, I feel fine.”

“Emma, I know this can be a scary thing. I had to deal with this when I was pregnant with Henry. I didn’t expect it to happen, didn’t know what to expect from it, and I hated having to expose to a stranger I was an omega, but it needed to be done. I needed to care for Henry and also myself because I had to take care of Henry,” Regina pointed out, making sure to keep her tone soft. She would not call it gentle, but definitely not her usual bite Emma was accustomed to. 

Regina knew one of the worst things about this for Emma was letting someone else know she was an alpha. Regina could relate to that very well, but there were some things that overrode that fear. She thought she got there with Emma, but apparently not.

“And you did an awesome job. Henry’s fine and I’m fine. I don’t need to do this,” Emma said.

Regina sighed. _Stay calm. You know why Emma’s nervous over this. Don’t lose it. Stay calm_. “You do need to do this because you were worried when I pointed out your appetite has picked up and your sex drive increased. These are just things I’ve noticed. What is happening inside you that we haven’t noticed? We shouldn’t wait to find out.”

Emma went quiet. This was the problem Regina had to bring up several times. They had no idea what was happening internally with Emma since she got off her beta drugs. It was time to find out. Emma seemed to agree as she opened the car door.

Regina breathed a sigh of relief. Had that not worked, Emma would have found herself teleported into the doctor’s office, which was how she should have done this in the first place. Why did she bother explaining things eight times to Emma? Instead of dwelling on that, she followed Emma out of the car and into the office. A mint scent lingered in the air and Regina wondered if it was on purpose, like to relax any antsy patients might come in. Maybe it would work on Emma.

They went to the counter and Emma looked around, casing the place maybe, trying to plan out her escape. Regina signed them in. The nurse at the desk looked at them, but found her paperwork more fascinating when her eyes found Regina’s glaring face. Regina took Emma’s hand to lead her away. Hazel eyes continued to wander the plain waiting room, lingering on some of the abstract paintings on the wall.

As Regina and Emma took a seat in the waiting area, Emma’s leg immediately went to bouncing. Regina put her hand on Emma’s knee, steadying the anxious behavior. Emma put her hand over Regina’s hand.

“Are you sure this is cool? I mean, what if this doctor opens his big mouth?” Emma asked.

“We have to get you checked out. You should have a checkup annually,” Regina replied. She was firm believer in this since having Henry. She needed to make sure their child was always in the best health or catch anything early and now she believed that for her child’s sire.

Emma scoffed and stared at her. “Oh, yeah? When was the last time you went to the doctor?”

Regina sighed. “I’ve made myself an appointment as well.” While that did not answer the question, it answered another question she knew lingered in Emma’s mind. Regina was now in a relationship and the omega in a relationship with an alpha who could possibly get her pregnant. Beyond that, they were a family, so she owed it to their son and her partner to make sure her health was in order. Yes, she would have to see a doctor.

Emma sat up a little straighter, clearly not expecting that. She regarded Regina with wide eyes and a closed mouth. Regina got a chance to savor her partner’s dumbfounded expression and silence for a long moment. Then, the nurse called for Emma, so she did not even have a chance to mount a comeback. Regina would take the small victory.

“Come on.” Regina tapped Emma on the elbow to get her to rise.

Emma sighed, sagged her shoulders, and climbed to her feet. “This is stupid.”

“It’s necessary. And if you’ll stop sulking, I’ll make it worth your while,” Regina replied.

Emma arched an eyebrow. “How worth my while?”

“I’ll make the chicken and potatoes dish you like.”

Emma moaned. “Oh. Sounds good.”

Regina shook her head. “It’s sad how easy it is to bribe you with food rather than sexual favors.”

Hazel eyes went wide again. “You mean I can get sexual favors, too?”

“You’re greedy.”

“No, you’re amazing, so I want everything you want to give me.” Emma grinned.

“Charmer.”

“And you love it.”

Regina rolled her eyes as they entered the examination room. They shut the door before Emma sat down on the examination table. They did not want to chance anyone but the doctor coming in and figuring out that Emma was not a beta. The doctor came in from a door opposite where Regina stood. He was tall, in a white lab coat, and focused on a clipboard for a moment. And he blinked dark brown eyes in surprise the second he saw them.

“I thought the nurse was lying about the mayor and sheriff being here together,” the doctor said. Santiago Aye was the best doctor in town, specializing in alphas, but he had never had the mayor as a patient.

“Who would lie about that?” Emma wondered aloud and she made a point.

The doctor shook his head and then looked between them. “This is true, but it was so unbelievable that a lie was a better explanation than both of you being here. I’m not sure I understand what is going on here, though. Care to explain?” He scratched the top of his head, mussing his thin dreadlocks.

“Doctor Aye, we need your absolute discretion on this matter,” Regina said.

“I am a doctor, in all worlds, so I take my oath here as seriously as I would take my practice in the Old World,” he replied.

Regina nodded, believing him. He was a doctor of legends in the Old World with powers well beyond her knowledge. While he had a mixed reputation in the Old World, nothing she knew about him suggested he would run his mouth about Emma’s status. “Emma is an alpha and she’s been taking street drugs to give off the scent and aura of a beta. Since we’ve come into a relationship, she’s stopped taking the drugs. In that time, I’ve noticed an increase in her appetite and sex drive.”

Nodding, Aye turned his attention to Emma. “Do you have a sample of this drug?”

Emma shook her head. “No, I took the last of them a few months ago. I thought it would stop me from wanting Regina.”

“And that didn’t work. Was Regina in rut and that overpowered your drugs?” Aye asked.

“No, Doctor, I was in heat,” Regina replied.

Aye’s face didn’t change, even if information was a surprise. There was not even a tick in his copper cheek. “Any other information?”

“I hadn’t ever had a rut until two weeks ago,” Emma said.

Aye made a grunting sound and then moved to the table with his medical supplies. “I’ll do a full checkup and blood work. I would rather have this drug to test to be able to tell you what side effects you might expect, but I’ll do my best with what I have.”

“That’s all we ask,” Regina said. She did not expect miracles, but she expected something close to it from a legendary doctor.

Regina was silent as Doctor Aye went to work. Emma did not ask any questions verbally, but her eyes asked more than enough. Aye talked her through everything he did, even the simple things like checking her heartbeat. He was especially thorough when he asked her drop her pants and she looked like she was going to run out of the room. She did so, but she hesitated enough for Aye to glance away, as if giving her some privacy. When he turned back, he continued on his examine with the utmost professionalism and made notes on his clipboard. He handed her a cup.

“Oh, I know what to do with this,” Emma said.

“Good, as it’s the last part of the examination. The bathroom is down the hall,” Aye replied.

“Should I accompany you?” Regina asked.

Emma shook her head. “No, no, no. I don’t need you to hold my hand to take a piss. You can badger him about my results while I’m gone.” She grinned, but it did not meet her eyes. She was gone before Regina could say anything.

“Should we be worried?” Regina asked.

Aye finished writing on his clipboard. “She seems healthy enough. I’ll know more after all her labs come back. Are you sure there isn’t any way for her to get me a sample of this drug she was on? If it’s been out of her system for two weeks…”

Regina shook her head. “Over four months.”

Aye winced. “How was she planning to get more if you want everyone to think she’s a beta?”

“That you have to ask her. I’ve given her a potion to do what the drug does without the side effects.”

Aye nodded and rubbed his palms together in thought. “All right.”

“Should I help brace her for any bad news so far?”

He shook his head. “No, nothing too bad. I think you both will handle it better with you together, though.”

Regina nodded and Emma returned with the cup. Aye put it in a medical bag and wrote on it. Emma took her seat on the table while Aye stepped out for a moment, giving the sample to a nurse more than likely. He then came back in and sat on his stool, jotting down on last thing.

“Step into my office,” Aye said as he climbed to his feet and walked to the other door.

Regina and Emma followed him and they took seats at his desk as he sat down. He glanced at his clipboard before focusing on them. Emma grabbed Regina’s hand and she could feel the little tremble. Emma was nervous and rightfully so since she had not been to the doctor in at least fifteen years.

“So, on the surface everything looks okay,” Aye said.

“Just okay?” Emma asked. “That doesn’t sound good.”

“Well, some of the things I can already tell are symptoms from whatever street drug you were taking since you presented. One of the reasons you pass so well for a beta is your height. You probably would have grown a few more inches if you didn’t start taking this drug as soon as you presented. Alphas’ bodies produce different levels of hormones after presenting and you had years of growth left in you that you cut off at the knees and it won’t come back like your growing metabolism. This growth includes height, musculature, and penis.”

Emma flinched, eyes glancing down at her crotch very briefly. “I should be bigger?” She turned to Regina. “Um…”

Regina gave her hand a squeeze. “You’re fine.” She did not have any problems with Emma’s size.

“I think my musculature is pretty good.” Emma flexed her bicep, displaying a rather impressive muscle.

“No, it is good, but most alphas display more bulk. Again, I suspect that all goes back to the drug. It doesn’t mean anything because you’re healthy. Your heart rate is good, weight is good, and such. Your blood pressure was a little high, but you can work that out through diet.”

Emma nodded. “Well, she’ll work it out for me.” She pointed to Regina.

Regina shrugged. “It’s true.”

“All right. I’ll call you to let you know about the fluid samples. If you would like, you could give me a hair sample for me to see if there are traces of the beta drugs you were taking,” Aye said.

Emma glanced at Regina, who nodded. Aye was out of his seat and went to it immediately. He took strands of Emma’s hair and placed them in a secure container. He stepped out of the office and returned empty-handed. He sat back at his desk.

“Is there any way you could get me a sample of the drug you were taking?” Aye asked.

“I’d have to go back to Boston to do that. Well, maybe not Boston. I could probably find something like it in any outside city. It’s not gonna be the same thing of course,” Emma replied.

“I have no doubt. Street drugs are never the same thing. Hopefully, it’ll have some common ingredients, just to give me an idea of what you were putting into your system if your hair and urine don’t have any answers. Any questions?” the doctor asked.

Regina sighed and sat up with as much dignity as she could muster. One of them would have to ask this question and she was certain Emma would not be the one. “What can we expect when we sync?”

Aye nodded. “Oh, you would want to know about that if Emma just had her first rut. Have you had your heat yet?”

“Yes, a week after her rut and very, very early,” Regina replied.

“Oh, so in four months you’ll both definitely be on the same cycle. You’ll actually appreciate it. You’ve never synced before?” Aye asked, eyes on Regina. It was clear Emma never synced with anyone since she never even had a rut.

Regina sniffed. “Would I be asking if I had?”

Aye did not flinch from the snap. “Quite true. Once you sync, you’ll find you’re under much better control than when you’re in heat or rut on your own.”

Emma scoffed. “Really? Because I can barely remember my rut beyond needing to stay inside Regina and fuck her senseless.”

Regina glared. “Miss Swan!” Yes, they were before a doctor, but some things needed to put delicately. Sometimes, she could not take Emma anywhere.

Emma stiffened and then slouched in her seat as if she were trying to disappear. “Sorry.”

Aye chuckled. “Well, yes, the nature of ruts and heats is the body wanting to reproduce and doing everything in its power to get you on board with that. Syncing shows you’ve met someone you’ve grown comfortable with and the bodies are now wanting to start a true family. The thing that makes syncing different is it turns more nurturing and caring. So, I’m sure during Regina’s heat…” He paused a moment, the phrase probably sounding weird to him. After all, it was not until this visit he had no reason to believe Regina was not the Alpha of Alphas. “During Regina’s heat, you want to take care of her, right?”

“Of course.” Emma sat up with pride in her spine.

“And during your rut, I’m sure Regina wanted to take care of you and this goes beyond sex. You want to make sure your partner is comfortable, properly fed, and taken care of. Your partner might not care about those things, but you do. You’ll both still have that when you sync, but you’ll still feel the insatiable need for each other,” the doctor explained.

“So, we won’t starve to death?” Emma asked.

“Would you let Regina starve during her heat?” he countered.

“No, of course not!”

“And I’m sure she wouldn’t let you starve during your rut. You’re both going to still have that when you sync. You’re going to want the mother of your pups to be at her best while you try to give her pups,” he replied.

Regina wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, but she was not too sure if she could totally believe him. She worried they would sync and fuck for three days without a thought of anything else. Henry could end up beyond traumatized. Emma could possibly die. She had read all sorts of horror stories while trying to avoid internet research. She knew how bad researching on the internet could be without a general reference and she tried to wait for the doctor’s appointment, but found it impossible.

“There’s no reason why Emma wouldn’t eat or drink anything during our sync, right?” Regina asked. She had read of alphas collapsing from exhaustion or dehydration often during ruts and syncs. There were some tales of alphas literally fucking to death.

“There have been times when alphas go through their ruts and end up in the hospital over things like that, but that simply means their partner didn’t take care of them. For a synced couple, you shouldn’t have any worries over that. You’ll both want to take care of each other in every way possible. I would suggest you make an appointment after you sync, just so we can keep an eye on Emma’s development and make sure everything is functioning as it should be in a synced alpha. Have you two exchanged marks yet?” Aye looked between them.

Emma hiccupped. “Doc!”

He waved her excitement off. “I’m not trying to get into your private business, Emma, any more than a doctor needs to. Exchanging marks activates other hormones in your brain, so it’s something to check on as well. So, mating marks?” Again, he looked between them.

“Not yet,” Regina answered.

“All right. So, again, make an appointment after you sync and after you exchange marks. Emma, I hate to be the one to tell you, but yearly checkups from now on,” Aye said.

Emma sucked her teeth. “Whatever.”

Regina patted her knee, actually expecting a bigger reaction. Emma sat back in her chair and frowned, but that was all. Aye smiled at them.

“That should be it for now. I wish you luck in your relationship,” Aye said.

Regina gave him a tight smile. “Thank you, doctor.”

Emma grunted, but at least gave him a nod in acknowledgment. Regina rose and shook Aye’s hand. Emma just gave him another nod. They left with that.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma was in a mood when they got home and very much aware of it. She was not sure why she was in a huff, but that did not make it go away. She pouted on the couch, hoping that killing some zombies in a video game would help. It was fine until Henry came in and joined the game, demolishing her score. She let out a groan and resisted the urge to throw the controller. _Can’t I have this one freaking thing?!_

“You okay?” Henry asked, giving her a sidelong look.

Emma rubbed her face with both hands, destroying any anger toward her son. “No. I’m off. I don’t know why.” Something felt jumbled in her chest, weird.

He gave her a nod. “You went to the doctor today, right? Maybe you’re scared about any results. I always get nervous after I get a TB shot. I always think I have it and it doesn’t itch, but I always want to scratch it and I spend all day thinking it’s turning red and everything and I swear I have it.”

Emma glanced at him. “I’m not surprised you’re a hypochondriac.” Something like that would fit his personality.

Henry rolled her eyes. “You say that, but I bet you’re all twisted in a knot because you’re thinking about all the crap that could go wrong with your tests.”

“Well, now I am!” She threw her hands up. Something else had been the problem, but now she realized how right Henry was. What if the doctor found something in her blood work? What if she done so much more than stunt her growth? What if she had destroyed her insides taking a street drug for almost fifteen years of her life? What if she did not have long to live thanks to her recklessness? “Henry, don’t do drugs, okay?”

Henry’s face scrunched up. “Uh… I wasn’t planning to, but okay. Something you want to talk about?”

Emma could not believe she just blurted that out to him. Stupid! Regina was _so_ not going to sleep with her tonight, which was probably for the best since who knew what the hell she had since she had never gone to a doctor in her life until now. _Ugh!_ If he told Regina she said that, she might have to sleep on the couch for a week or something. _At least she’s making the chicken already_. She scrubbed her face with both hands very hard, to the point where she was surprised she did not pull down some skin.

“I’ve never gone to the doctor before and I thought I’d feel better when it was done, but I don’t. I feel like I’m failing as an adult,” Emma admitted. That was part of it anyway. The part she could put into words.

Henry gave her a soft smile. “You’re okay, Ma. You know why?”

“Because your mom is here to save me from myself?”

Henry laughed. “No. Because you’re still here and you’re doing okay and you did it by yourself. You didn’t have anyone to let you know about going to the doctor or why it’s important or anything like that. You didn’t have someone to lose to you at video games and then awkwardly and randomly tell you not to do drugs, even though I know it comes from a place of caring.”

Emma groaned. “I suck.”

Henry gave her a light shove. “But, you don’t! That’s the thing. You’re okay and you’re okay because of you. Not many people can say that. It’ll be okay, Ma. You’re doing okay.”

Emma did not feel okay and she suspected it was because she was getting a pep talk from her twelve-year-old son. It was nice he cared enough to make her feel better, even while she was being weird, but she knew this was inappropriate. She was just sucking at being an adult all the more. And the day would probably get a lot worse before it got better as Zelena appeared in the living room with a crying Robbie. Emma wished she could bawl her eyes out, too.

“Why is she always crying with you?” Emma said, frowning at Zelena. For a moment, she felt like Zelena was failing at adulting more than she was and that made her feel better. Horrified over that, she buried the feeling as quickly as she could. _What the hell is wrong with me? What if this is a side effect? I might have crazy mood swings or something._

“I left her damned favorite teething toy here,” Zelena huffed.

Emma glanced at Henry and wondered what it was like when he was teething. She had shadows of false memories of it, but they faded mostly. Zelena did not stick around, probably off to drop a fussy Robbie in Regina’s waiting arms, even though Regina’s arms were full of making dinner. For some reason, she wanted to see that. Rising from the couch, she wandered to the kitchen and saw exactly what she expected. Regina holding Robbie and moving about the kitchen as Zelena whined about Robbie’s teething.

The sight was enough to make Emma’s breath hitch. She always thought Regina looked beautiful, but even more so when she was holding a baby. She felt like that was just some stupid stereotyping that was pushed into her mind, how lovely omegas were when they had a baby, but it did not completely feel that way. She never thought Zelena looked anything but awkward when she had Robbie, like she realized how half-baked it was to become pregnant by her sister’s soul mate without any actual desire to have a child. Zelena clearly loved Robbie and was trying, but her with her daughter was never the same as Regina with her niece.

Emma shook her head and then went back to the sofa. Henry was gone already, so Emma had to entertain herself. She played video games, but only because it gave her something to do with her hands and if she paid enough attention she would not overthink anything. Of course, that did not work as she heard Regina moving about the kitchen while cooing at Robbie. The more she heard, she more she disliked her thoughts, but she could not stop them.

That was her omega in there. Her beautiful, bright, caring omega. Regina carried her child and was willing to build a family with her. Regina was willing to drop her alpha facade, at least in the house and around their family, for her. No one had ever done so much for just her. It hit her in so many places it was too difficult to categorize.

But, what if she was making Regina weak? Was that even Regina in there, cooking food for her, bouncing a baby in her arms? Or was that who Regina thought she wanted? Was that who Regina thought the alpha inside of her that she tried so hard to kill wanted?

“Emma!” Regina snapped her fingers in front of Emma’s face.

Emma blinked. “Huh?”

“I’ve been calling you for the last two minutes. Your dinner’s getting cold,” Regina said, a frown etched on her features.

“Oh. Sorry.” Emma shook her head.

Regina’s face softened. She reached out and rubbed Emma’s back. “Are you all right?”

“I don’t deserve you.” She had that thought many times, but it felt so true right now.

Regina smiled, causing her eyes to sparkle. “My love, it’s not about deserving. If it was, I never would’ve met you or had Henry to have any of this in the beginning. Now, come and eat.”

Emma nodded and got up. She went to the table to see roasted chicken breast and those little potatoes she did not even know were a thing until staying with Regina. There were mixed vegetables, which she had learned to love, and pilaf rice, another thing she did not know was a thing until Regina. Before staying with Regina, rice used to be classified by color for her, white, brown, and yellow. She had never realized how little she knew about food until living in the house. Was Regina always a little homemaker like this? Or was she playing the good little omega? Emma did not understand.

“Ma!” Henry leaned over and pinched her.

Emma jumped. “Ow!” She turned to her son. “What was that for?”

“I’m trying to tell you what I want to do for my birthday, but you’re not listening. It’s like you’re not even here. I mean, you didn’t eat anything,” Henry replied.

Emma looked down at her plate and sure enough she had not touched anything. This was one of her favorite meals. How long had she just been sitting in front of it? She looked up, finding all eyes on her, including freaking Robbie. Was the baby judging her? She would not put it past Zelena’s kid.

“Um… what do you want to do for your birthday?” Emma asked, picking up her fork and trying to ignore the worried look Regina gave her.

Henry smiled and sat up straight. “A family cookout. It’ll be nice. You can learn to work a grill or something. I dunno. But, it’ll be nice to have family around and just relax, right?”

“Henry, is it all right if I invite Mal?” Regina asked, bouncing Robbie in her arms. Robbie grinned and laughed and Emma’s stomach flipped. She was not sure if it was because of Regina holding a baby or the mention of Maleficent.

“Yeah, Mom. She’s like your family, right?” Henry replied.

“The closest thing I have to it outside of the people sitting at this table,” Regina said and then rolled her eyes. “And I suppose not counting Snow.”

Henry laughed and it made Emma feel so good inside. She had a son. She had a son and a family with this amazing woman. Why was she so messed up inside? Why did she feel like she did not deserve any of this? Why did she feel like she had done something wrong by having a family with Regina, like she had cut Regina down? _How the hell did I go from dreading a doctor’s appointment to this shit? What the hell is wrong with me?_

Emma was glad for a chance to run up to upstairs, take a shower, and just get away from everyone. She needed to get her head right. At the very least, get the things troubling her in order, so she could take care of them one by one. She rushed into the shower, stuck her head under the water, and hoped it washed away this muddle. _I shouldn’t have gone to the doctor. I knew I shouldn’t have gone. I let Regina entice me with damn food and sexual favors and shit, now look at me_. She banged her head against the tile as her dick twitches at the very thought of sexual favors.

“You’re a damned idiot,” Emma muttered, not sure if she meant herself or her cock. Both more than likely.

She had planned to stay in until the water ran cold, but she forgot the water never ran cold in Regina’s house. Her thoughts did not straighten themselves out. It was like the world did not make sense anymore. Rubbing her eye, she got out of the shower and wrapped herself in a towel. She stepped into the bedroom and swallowed her tongue at the sight waiting for her.

“Holy shit,” Emma’s mouth dropped open.

Regina was propped up on the pillows, arms spread like a queen on her throne. But, she was not dressed like a queen, unless queens wore garters. But, then again, knowing Regina, she probably did wear garters and a whole lot more, or even less, as a queen. In fact, the black and red corset she had on was probably one from when she was a queen.

“I thought we’d make good on some of those other promises,” Regina said with a smirk.

“I…” Emma was not sure what to say. She was not in the mood really, but part of her was totally in the mood because Regina was in a fucking corset and down to fuck. “I’m kinda tired.” Her mind was not up to it, even if her dick was.

Regina chuckled. “You need to tell that to every piece of you then.” Her eyes drifted downward.

“Fuck!” Emma moved her hand to foolishly attempt to cover her raging boner. “Damn traitor.”

Regina pushed herself up and crawled to the edge of the bed. Actually crawled! Looking like a big cat. Emma bit her lip to keep from moaning. If she got any harder, she thought her cock might split open.

“Emma, sweetie, tell me what’s wrong. You’ve been distracted all day and now you say you’re tired, even though at least part of you is happy to see me.” Regina ran a finger along Emma’s cock and then sat up on her knees, cupping Emma’s face. “Talk to me, my love. Tell me what’s wrong.”

“I don’t know. I’m just… I wanna say worried. Henry thinks I’m scared to get doctor’s results. And all tonight I just kept thinking about how I messed you up,” Emma said, rubbing her forehead as if it would help get her brain together. It felt like there was more, but those seemed like the important ones. Or at least the ones she could put into words, which was often better than she could do with other things that darkened her thoughts.

Regina blinked, batting her lashes in a way that made Emma groan. “What made you think you messed me up?”

Sighing, Emma scratched the back of her head. “You were this badass alpha before I came along. Now, you’re in a kitchen all the time now and I keep seeing you holding Robbie and it makes me think of how good you look with a baby in your arms. I dunno. It’s like you’re just this picture perfect omega now and it doesn’t feel like you.”

Regina stroked Emma’s cheeks with her thumbs. “I was in the kitchen long before you came along and that doesn’t make me any less of an alpha. I like being in the kitchen. Cooking has always brought me comfort and joy. And, I do look good with a baby in my arms. You don’t have to be ashamed of thinking that and you’re not reducing me to a stereotype if you think that. It’s not prejudice to think someone looks good holding a baby.”

Emma shook her head. “But, you’re an omega. It’s like you should just have a baby.”

Regina shook her head. “Do you think I should just have a baby or would you like to have a baby with me?”

Emma scratched her head. “I dunno. I didn’t think that much on it. I always just get stuck on you holding a baby and how beautiful you look, be it Robbie or the Little Guy.” 

Regina studied her with a tilted head for a moment. “Do you think these thoughts are coming to you because you’re not on the beta drugs anymore?”

Emma shook her head and rubbed her forehead to the point where she felt like she might crack her skull. “No. This just happened tonight. Maybe I am worried about the doctor and it’s making me crazy.”

Regina leaned in, giving her a little kiss. “You don’t have to worry about the doctor. You’re healthy. He said so.”

“But, the blood work and stuff…” What if there was something there?

“Will come back fine. It’ll all be fine. So, instead of worrying, what if you just…” Regina leaned in close. “Fuck me?”

Emma groaned and throbbed. “Fuck, Regina. Are you sure?”

“Why wouldn’t I be sure? I made you promises, Emma. Promises I intend to keep. So, stop worrying over things that you either have no control over or aren’t problems at all and come to bed. You know you want to.” Regina took a juicy nip out of her bottom lip.

Emma growled, catching a whiff of Regina’s scent as she pulled back. Her dick pulsated again and she found it harder to think about anything other than being inside of Regina. Regina said she was not ruined and she needed to take Regina’s word for it. To not take Regina’s word for it would be even more alpha ego crap, acting like she knew better for Regina than Regina did.

“Come to me, Emma.” Regina crocked her finger at Emma before resuming her position at the head of the bed, back to looking like a queen, like she was in charge, like she was the alpha.

Emma was powerless to resist, crouching onto the bed and going to Regina. She was met with a deep kiss. She could not help moaning into Regina’s mouth as Regina’s tongue caressed her own. Each stroke helped melt away her anxiety, making her want to merge with Regina and never leave the comfort of Regina’s embrace. 

Emma felt the towel drop away, but she was not sure if it was an act of God, herself, or Regina, not that it mattered. And then Regina’s hand was on her and that was the only thing that mattered. Pleasure flooded her with the simple touch. With a moan, her head dropped, breaking the kiss.

“You don’t have anything to worry about, Emma. I want to take care of you,” Regina said, hand slowly gliding up and down Emma’s shaft.

Emma’s breath hitched and she pumped her hips. “I don’t… I don’t… I don’t want to cramp your style.”

Regina laughed. “Oh, my love, you’ve given me my style back. I have a mate… well, eventually. I have a son. We have a good home and loving family. What more could I want?” She pushed up to give Emma a peck on the lips. “Well, besides, you inside of me.”

Emma made a strangled noise and she pulsed in Regina’s hand. “Fuck. I want that. It sounds so fucking sexy when you say it. It makes me want it even more somehow.”

“I know you do. I want that just as much as you do. Will you give me that?” Regina asked, her voice low and soft. It danced across Emma’s nerves like a gentle caress.

All Emma could do was whimper and go in for another kiss. The press of Regina’s lips suddenly fueled her and she leaned in more, pushing Regina down to the pillows. Regina wrapped her free hand around Emma’s back while her other hand never left Emma. She could feel her essence leaking out, covering Regina’s fingers. Thinking about it made her crave Regina all the more.

“I need you. I need you. I need you,” Emma chanted, one hand holding her up and the other clutching Regina’s breast. “This corset is hot and all, but I wanna feel your skin.”

“You sure want me to stop to get out of this corset?” Regina circled her thumb around Emma’s cockhead, pressing against the dimple in the center. It was almost painful, but registered as ecstasy and flashed through her.

Emma whined and could not help humping Regina’s hand. “Fuck, babe. You look real good and this feels real good, but yeah, I wanna feel you.”

Regina gave her a little smirk and then the hand was gone. Emma wanted to mourn the loss, but watching Regina sit up and make her way out of that corset made up for everything. Emma had to sit up and move back a little. She was not sure when, but she put her hand around her length and stroked it as Regina worked. She hissed the moment Regina’s breasts were free. She moved without thought, taking a hardened nipple into her mouth. A noise she could only describe as cute left Regina’s mouth as Emma lapped at her nipple.

“Oh, Emma,” Regina sighed.

Emma nibbled and bit at Regina’s plump flesh, earning more moans. Emma felt like she was in charge when all of a sudden Regina’s hand was back, working up and down. For a second, it felt like all of her bones turned to jelly and she slumped from the pleasure.

“You need this, don’t you?” Regina asked, free hand threading through Emma’s wet hair.

“Always.”

Regina smirked and moved to where she was able to take one of Emma’s breasts into her mouth. Emma saw stars from the sensation of having her dick caressed and her nipple sucked. She was not sure how she remained upright. Bliss crackled through her like fireworks under her skin and she suspected it would get better as Regina kissed her way down Emma’s body.

“Regina…” Emma planned to object. She really did. She did not need Regina to give her oral at the moment. In fact, she was not sure if she would ever be comfortable with it ever again, thinking about how she changed Regina, turned her into some domestic stereotype. And then Regina kissed her head and all thoughts of comfort left her brain, along with any thoughts about not wanting oral sex again.

Regina’s mouth was Heaven. Emma just lived in the moment, letting pleasure wash over her, and she bathed in it. It took a thump at the base of her dick to bring her back to reality.

“Regina, stop.” Emma wanted to pull away, but her body refused to cooperate. “I’m gonna come!”

Regina did not stop, taking Emma deep into her throat. Fuck. The sight alone was enough to make Emma climax, but the feel and knowing she was the only person Regina ever voluntarily did this was enough to blow her mind and blow she did. And Regina being the gift that kept on giving swallowed and swallowed and swallowed.

“Fuck, Regina…” Emma whimpered.

“We’ll get to that.” Regina placed a gentle kiss to Emma’s still spurting cockhead and down her length. When she got to Emma knot, she kissed it and then ran her tongue over and around it. The rapture that shot through Emma made her see white and she felt like she shot a load across the room. She was not sure she was even in her body anymore. Everything was on overload and then slowly her brain came back to her, a little anyway.

Emma could not catch her breath. “That was… that was…” There were no words.

Regina smirked again and settled back on the pillows, arms up and looking quite regal for someone who had a line of Emma’s essence trickling down the corner of her mouth. “I’m sure it was an experience. Now, there was something about you being inside of me?” She waved Emma on with her fingers.

“Regina, I just…” Emma was about to point out she just came and she had her knot to worry about. Even if it was in the cold air, her knot would be there for a few minutes. There was no way she was ready to give Regina the royal fucking she deserved.

“You have a mouth and fingers, Emma. I believe they work just as well as the other parts.”

Emma blinked. That was true. “You sucked my brains out, okay? That’s why I’m suddenly stupid. Not because I’m some bullshit alpha who only thinks with her dick, okay?”

Regina arched an eyebrow. “Emma, I could, would, have, and probably will call you lots of things, but never an alpha who only thinks with her dick. Which is why I reminded you that you have a mouth and fingers. I’m surprised you remember your name right now from the look on your face.”

“To be honest, I’m not sure how I’m even conscious now. Who the hell told you to kiss someone’s knot?” Emma hated to think Regina was forced into it when she was forced to bed the King, but did not want to bring that up right now. That would be issues for both of them. Who the hell wanted to find out they had the same sexual kinks as their grandfather?

Regina shrugged. “It seemed like the thing to do while I was there.”

Emma shook her head and decided to think about it later. For now, she went in for kisses and to feel Regina against her. She tasted herself on Regina’s lips and tongue and loved her all the more for it. The press of their breasts together was a pure delight as they kissed like they had all the time in the world. She did have all the time in the world for Regina. Hands roamed soft skin, clutching and kneading, and Emma was not surprised at all when she was hard all over again. Regina needed a treat before the main course, though. Or maybe it was Emma who needed the treat. Regina’s smell was driving her wild.

Emma pulled away from their kiss. “I gotta go…”

Regina did not even question what she meant as Emma dragged her tongue down Regina’s body. Coming face to face with Regina’s arousal would never fail to turn Emma on. And when she tasted Regina and Regina arched into her mouth, she felt like she might come apart at the seams with how much pleasure she took in it. Emma flattened her tongue and lapped at Regina like she was eating ice cream and did not want to miss a drop.

Regina moaned and writhed. Her hips moved, but Emma put a hand on her thigh to still her. Emma did not want the distraction as she licked and sucked and tasted and smelled and heard. She looked up, wanting to see Regina’s eyes. The moment they made eye contact, Regina cried out and released into Emma’s wanting mouth. Emma moaned with her and continued to gently run her tongue along Regina as she came down from her high, panting slightly.

“Emma, here.” Regina made a weak motion with her hands from Emma to come up to her.

Emma wasted no time and there was another kiss, just as passionate as the last. And then Emma found herself on her back, Regina on top of her, and the kiss still going, so it seemed like a win. It had to be a win as Regina started grinding against her abdomen, promises of things to come, and gliding over Emma’s painfully hard erection.

“You ready for me?” Regina asked, swiping at Emma’s lips with her tongue.

“Always.”

“Good.” Regina held Emma in her grip and got her into position.

Emma sat up, enjoying the sight of her disappearing into Regina’s welcoming warmth. Visuals would be the death of her, she was sure. She bit her lip as Regina sat up and then sank down, sending all sorts of hot explosives through Emma’s system. Regina smiled at her and started off slow, hands braced on Emma’s chest to steady herself. She gave Emma’s nipples a pinch as she worked at a leisurely pace, rocking against Emma like they had all the time in the world. Emma cried out with each pull of her nipples, but she loved it all.

Emma enjoyed the show for a long while, moaning and whining as those searing bursts under her skin came more and more with each darling motion from Regina. She ran her hands up and down Regina’s arms and then caressed and stroked Regina’s chest as her hips started to move with Regina. Then, Regina took hold of her hands and moved them to hips, ceding control to Emma. The gift itself made Emma’s brain swim, but not enough to take her mind off the prize.

Emma wasted no time increasing their pace. Soon, the room was filled with their moans and the sound of their skin meeting. It was music to her ears and added to the experience, sizzling all throughout her being.

“Oh, Emma. I’m so close!” Regina gnashed her teeth and arched her back, chasing her orgasm with the fierceness Emma expected of her.

Emma shifted, planted her feet on the bed to get better leverage, and increased her pace. Regina threw her head back, rode Emma harder, chased what she needed more. Emma growled, wanting to give Regina everything. Regina grabbed one of Emma’s hands, moved it from her hip to her ass. When Regina locked eyes with her, she knew exactly what Regina wanted.

“This is my ass,” Emma growled and gave it a good slap.

Regina moaned and her head fell back again. Emma gave her another slap and she squeezed Emma’s nipple in return. Emma could feel her orgasm building, probably about to erupt if Regina kept teasing her nipple. She needed to do something drastic to make sure Regina finished first and she knew just what to do. She gave Regina one more slap and then slipped a finger into Regina’s other hole. The sound that escaped Regina was otherworldly and the way she clamped down on Emma, hugged Emma, pulsed all around Emma was all Emma needed to fall off the edge.

Emma came with a loud cry of her own and lost track of time for what she hoped were seconds. When everything came back into focus, Regina was pressed against her chest, panting into her neck with her arms tucked against Emma. Emma put her arm around Regina’s back and stroked up and down.

“Think it’ll be like this when we sync? Nice and peaceful… and a little dirty,” Emma said.

“Dirty? What are you trying to say about my ass, Emma?” Regina asked, kissing her chin.

“I thought it was my ass.” Emma used both hands to give Regina’s ass a squeeze. “I do love this ass.”

Regina chuckled. “I know you do. I love what you do with it. I trust you, Emma. I love you. So, I want you to know, it’s not a threat to me when I cook for you or when you enjoy the sight of me holding a baby. I can do that with you because it’s you. I’m not going to do it for anyone else, only you.”

Emma nodded. “I know. I think I really am just worried about this doctor business. What if something is wrong? I took drugs for fifteen years, Regina. I don’t know what was in them. They stopped my development, but what else did they do? What if they messed with my brain or something and we don’t know? Or my blood? What if I’m sick or going to get sick because of it?” The very idea troubled her, not because she feared dying, but because she did not want to miss out on time with her family and she did not want to cause them pain.

Emma knew fifteen-year-old her could never imagine thirty-year-old her having a family or being responsible, so she could not blame the teenager for taking the drugs. Hell, twenty-five-year old her never would have thought this was possible. But, it was now. She had responsibilities to her family and she wanted to honor those responsibilities.

“We’ll find out together and work on it together if necessary. You’re not alone anymore, Emma. You don’t have to be afraid.” Regina snuggled closer to her and Emma felt that was the truth.

“Thank you.”

Regina shook her head. “No need to thank me. Like you said, this is nice and peaceful. I don’t think I’ve ever actually known peace in my entire life. You brought that. So, thank you.”

Emma did not have any way to respond to that, so she held Regina tighter. She felt at ease for the first time since they returned home. She had not messed Regina up and she did not mess up their family. The idea helped settle her.

“You’re amazing, you know?” Emma asked as she eyes drifted shut, feeling like she was floating.

“No, my love, you are amazing. You don’t have to worry. Everything will be fine. I love you and I love doing things for you. Never worry about that,” Regina replied, her voice lower than usual. She was probably on her way to sleep as well.

“I love you, too.” Emma caressed Regina’s back as she felt Regina’s breathing even out against her. Regina’s weight on her was a comfort, a security, but most of all a promise.

She hoped when they synced it was like the doctor said. It would be nice to have a couple of days of focusing on each other, having an intimacy that transcended sex. Hell, they might even make another baby. Maybe. It could be nice.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: it’s Regina’s turn to go to the doctor.


	2. Trust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters; Disney/ABC does.
> 
> Public Service Announcement: there’s more than the usual anal play here, in case anyone cares. Emma and Regina decide to take that next step. Just letting you know in case this bothers someone.

2: Trust

Regina needed to make her own visit to the doctor’s office. In the past, she would have done this alone. She would have sneaked around to make sure no one knew. Well, she would not have done this in the first place were it not for Emma, who she invited with her. After all, her health was just as important to Emma as it was to her now, just like Emma’s health was important to her. So, as a couple they went to pay a visit to Doctor Alexander, an OBGYN who specialized in omegas. She was also Regina’s former doctor in the Enchanted Forest and saw them immediately.

“Your Majesty,” Doctor Alexander said as they stepped into the examination room.

Regina shook her head. “It’s fine to use my name. The only one who called me ‘Your Majesty’ is this one and half the time she messes it up.” She motioned to Emma.

“You don’t complain about those half times since I’m usually doing something that makes us both forget our own names,” Emma replied with a smirk.

Regina groaned and rolled her eyes. “Why do I bring you anywhere?”

Doctor Alexander cleared her throat. “Are you here for yourself or for the Sheriff?”

Regina sighed. “I’m here for me. Despite what I’ve been insisting on for decades, I’m still quite the omega. If you keep up with town gossip, you know I’m in a relationship with that.” She motioned to Emma once again, who was still smirking.

“All right.” Doctor Alexander seemed to be waiting for more.

Regina ground her teeth together for a moment. “Two days ago I took Emma to get checked out by an alpha doctor and I thought it was only fair that I come see you since our relationship is getting serious.”

Doctor Alexander arched an eyebrow, but did not even glance at Emma. “Serious as in exchanged mating marks or about to sync serious or serious that you two are thinking about sleeping together and want to be tested?”

“Syncing and as you know I’ve never synced with anyone, so I don’t know what to expect,” Regina said.

“You made the right decision to come see me. It’s always a good idea to see your doctor when you suspect you’re going to sync and after you sync. Also, after you exchange mating marks. Understood?” The doctor looked between both of them with stern brown eyes.

“Of course.”

Doctor Alexander nodded. “Now, since it’s been literally decades and we have all of this lovely modern equipment, I will give you the most thorough examination I can offer. Emma, are you staying?”

“Yeah. I wanna be there for Regina, like she was for me.”

“Okay, very good. Now, since apparently you’re an alpha, I’m going to set some ground rules,” Doctor Alexander said.

Emma blinked. “What? Why?”

“Oh, I can’t tell you how many alphas I get growling in my face while I examine their partner’s reproductive space. You’d think they rented and weren’t getting a deposit back,” Doctor Alexander remarked.

Emma frowned. “I’m not renting, Regina, and I don’t own her.”

“Emma’s not like that. It’ll be fine,” Regina said.

Doctor Alexander shrugged, probably not in the mood to find out what would happen if she did not trust Regina. While she had no use for Doctor Alexander after she murdered the King and decided to live as an alpha, the doctor still knew of her reputation. The doctor was very aware she was no longer the scared, shivering omega she tended to years ago.

Regina gave Emma a pointed look before she got up on the exam table. Emma better not be like those other alphas. While it was true Emma had changed some since starting her potion and giving up her beta drugs, Regina had not noticed a real change in her behavior. And she was right. Emma sat there without any growling or other possessive alpha crap as Doctor Alexander worked on Regina.

“Well, good news is you’re actually more healthy now than when I used to examine you,” the doctor reported as she moved away from the examination table. Regina remained sitting there.

“Modern medicine and possibly less stress.” Regina gave Emma a little smile, because despite being a pain in the ass from the moment she stepped into town, Emma also helped Regina relax and calm down.

Doctor Alexander smiled, too. “We’ll chalk it up to those things. I’m sure there is much less stress in your life now, even with you being the full-time mayor, a full-time mother, and a part-time hero. I’m glad to see you gained the weight I kept after you for before. I was certain you had an eating disorder back then. I just have a few questions for you, and then you can ask me any if you like.”

Regina nodded. “All right.”

“Henry, is your biological child with Emma?”

“Yes.”

The doctor nodded and made a note on her chart. “Have you gone to another doctor since me to try to conceive?”

Regina shook her head. “No, Henry was a very fortunate accident.”

The doctor nodded again. “Perhaps less stress and a less restrictive environment allowed you to conceive.” She seemed to be thinking aloud, probably trying to figure out why it was Regina managed to get pregnant here, but never back in the Old World.

Regina licked her lips. “Do you think…” Could she even hope? “Do you think… it could happen again?” Maybe not in Storybrooke where her spell would always be in place, but out in the real world maybe… just maybe…

“I don’t see why not if it happened with Henry. I know back in the Enchanted Forest, I had several theories as to why you weren’t conceiving, but truly maybe this change was what you needed. We’ll run some tests to see how everything is. It’s good to know your hormone levels and everything anyway before you sync or before you mate. Those things tend to change with those two events.” Doctor Alexander looked at Emma. “The alpha doctor told you that, right?”

“We saw Doctor Aye,” Regina said.

“Oh, he’s a very good doctor. A little more personality than I thought you’d handle,” the doctor said to Regina. “Sometimes, he doesn’t tell little things if he’s not asked. So, did he mention the hormone issue?” She glanced back at the sheriff.

Emma shook her head. “No, but he took blood and stuff like that. It was my first visit to the doctor in my adult life.”

Doctor Alexander openly flinched. “Oh, you two are a pair. This one no doctor for decades and you no doctor at all.” She shook her head.

“We asked him about syncing,” Emma supplied, like that would make things better than they both had not been to the doctor in ages.

“It would be your first time as well?” Doctor Alexander asked Emma.

“Yeah. Hell, until about a week ago, Regina was the only person in town who knew I was an alpha,” Emma replied.

“Okay, I’m going to assume you went through all of the necessary alpha things with Doctor Aye. Santiago wouldn’t have wanted you to get caught by surprise.”

Regina corked an eyebrow. “Santiago? I wasn’t aware you and Doctor Aye was such close friends.” While she very much liked Doctor Alexander and respected her in both worlds, she did not think the two doctors were on the same level. Doctor Aye was a legend in the Old World.

“Better him than Whale. Every month the medical community get together and play nice. We believe it helps the town if we all know each other and are somewhat friendly to each other. I can stomach Doctor Aye enough, as long as he keeps his medical theories to himself. Do you think you’re close to syncing?” Doctor Alexander asked.

“It should be our next cycle. Emma had her rut and then almost right after I had my heat very early,” Regina replied.

“That does sound like you’ll be together on the next cycle. How much time would you say you have?”

“Oh, this just happened, so four months.”

“That’s good. You’ll get to know each other even better during that time and when you sync, it’ll be like an old dance rather than new shoes,” Doctor Alexander said.

“Really? I thought first times were always awkward,” Emma said.

Doctor Alexander wagged a finger at her. “Not when you sync. Whenever syncing happens, it always with a couple who are very close and trusting. It’s not something that just happens because you’re around each other a lot or you like the way the other smells, like with heats and ruts. It’s not even about sex. Well, not completely about sex. It’s about intimacy. It’s about togetherness. It’s about being able to build a life and create a life. And none of it is by accident. It’s all by design.”

“You make it sound poetic and romantic,” Regina said with a curl to her lip. Doctor Aye had not done that and she was certain she preferred his method. There was no way a sync could be all flowers and lemonade considering how heats and ruts were.

“And you look disgusted.” While Doctor Alexander had the nerve to look amused.

“I’m sure it’s messy.”

“Well, yes, it’s messy. It’s two people mating for three days. But, it’s more than that. It’s going to be intense the first time, but again, it’ll be like an old dance because you know each other well, which is how a sync should be. Still, you’ll be overwhelmed with your senses, wanting each other, but wanting so many parts of each other,” Doctor Alexander replied.

“We’ll take care of each other, right? That’s what Doctor Aye said. We’ll want to be there for each other and take care of each other?” Emma asked, arms folded across her chest. She tapped the inside of her elbow with one finger.

“Oh, yes. Again, syncing is so much more than sex. It’s beyond your normal rut and heat. There’s no amount of research you can do that will prepare you, but it won’t be hard,” Doctor Alexander tried to assure them.

“Will we have to worry about Henry? It’s already difficult getting him out of the house when one of us is going through it. How will it be with both of us?” Regina asked.

“You’ll do fine. Syncing is not meant to have a couple tearing at each other in front of their children. You won’t be out of your mind for each other like you usually are during a cycle. You know you have four months. Try to arrange for Henry to stay with family or friends around the time whichever one of you cycles first,” Doctor Alexander answered.

“But, we don’t know if Emma’s cycle is even regular since she’s only had one,” Regina said.

“This is true. Plan for four months from now. Regina, you’ll know the signs if you think Emma is coming into rut early. Just know that when one of you starts, the other will. That’s the nature of syncing. Once you find a place for your son, also make sure you notify work because you will miss days and you will not care about that.”

“Won’t care about work, but will care about son. I feel like I might’ve invented this,” Emma said.

“Doctor Aye also assured us we wouldn’t starve to death,” Regina said.

“He’s right. Again, syncing is different from an individual heat or rut and it’s more than just making babies, even though you will both be at your most potent. If you’re not planning on having a child, make sure you go to the pharmacy right beforehand and pick up a prescription I will write you. You take the pills right after the sync for three days. If you are planning a child, be aware that just because you’re in sync doesn’t mean a baby will just happen,” Doctor Alexander said.

“If I can even have babies,” Regina reminded her. She was certain she could not, but that was magic. There used to be a medical reason that prevented her from having children, though. Doctor Alexander had never been able to put a name to it, but for all her years married to the King, Regina never once conceived.

“We’ll test for that.” Doctor Alexander clapped her hands together, as if enthused. She would probably love to find out the answers to questions that had plagued her back in the Enchanted Forest. Why could Regina not conceive?

“I also took a potion… to prevent me from having children,” Regina admitted. She owed it to Emma to inform her doctor of everything in case Doctor Alexander knew of some way to change things.

Doctor Alexander did not look surprised. “Did you do this before or after your marriage to the King?”

“After his death.”

That did get a look of shock. Doctor Alexander’s mouth dropped open for a moment. “Why? You were already parading about as an alpha. What was the point?”

Regina scowled. “My mother.” She felt like she would never have been able to protect a child against her mother. She could not even protect herself and that was proven not too long ago.

Doctor Alexander rubbed her chin. “I’m sure there’s a story there and probably not a happy one from what I recall of your mother. Well, the potion obviously doesn’t work or you wouldn’t have Henry.”

“Henry was conceived, carried, and delivered in the outside world.”

Doctor Alexander now tapped her chin. “Okay. That makes some sense. Well, Regina, you know as well as I that a doctor from the Old World would also have magical training. If you want to give me the ingredients, I can try to find some way around it if that’s what you want. Have you two discussed more children?”

“Not really,” Emma said. 

“Just the usual things that come up in the heat of the moment during heat and rut,” Regina said.

Doctor Alexander nodded. “That is to be expected.”

“Does that count as a discussion?” Emma asked.

The doctor shook her head. “No, it does not. Have that discussion before you sync. Have a discussion about mating marks before you sync. Have a discussion about where you see this relationship going before you sync. Have a discussion about what you’re comfortable with doing sexually. You’re not going to have conversations like this during your sync. You’ll talk about things like how grossly in love you are with each other, how you can’t wait to have a thousand pups, and you’ll talk about anything that helps you get closer, but it’ll be things like childhood memories, travels, fears, and dreams. For some reason, I’m willing to bet you two will compare battle scars at one point.”

Emma chuckled. “Hey, stay out of my gross love life.”

“You’ll be fine. It’ll be fine. But, again, doctors’ appointments after you sync and fill that prescription, regardless of the potion you took,” the doctor ordered.

“Yes, ma’am.” Emma, in rare form all of a sudden, even saluted.

Regina sighed. “I am really never bringing you anywhere ever again.”

“Well, doc, if you never see me again, you know I’ve been chained to the bed,” Emma remarked.

“Don’t make me consider it. You won’t like it,” Regina countered in a voice that dared Emma to contradict her. Knowing Emma, the voice turned her on.

Doctor Alexander smiled, but shook her head. She gave Regina the prescription and exited the examination room. Regina got dressed, but she and Emma did not leave immediately. She took Emma’s hand and Emma gave hers a squeeze.

“It seems we have a lot to talk about,” Regina said.

Emma nodded. “Yeah. Is it weird I’m looking forward to it?”

Regina shook her head. “No, I am, too.” It would give her a chance to help Emma understand she was fine with being an omega around Emma. It was not something she expected, but it was true. Emma made her comfortable with herself and she wanted to do the same with Emma. She wanted Emma to understand she had visions of a future with her, as well.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina’s doctor’s visit was not followed by the angst of Emma’s visit. While she had not been to Doctor Alexander in decades, she had at least been to a doctor when she was pregnant with Henry. Beyond that, once in Storybrooke while the Curse was in place, she did not age, did not change, so she did not get sick. She was not as concerned over any test results, but her status was on her mind. It probably did not help that she was cooking.

Emma had worried she ruined Regina because Regina seemed to take to many omega stereotypes. It was a little disorienting to realize things she liked or wanted all of her life could be seen as omega stereotypes. But, Regina liked cooking and homemaking and wanted children, as long as they were with the right person. Was that so wrong?

“Should I feel bothered?” Regina was not bothered by what she liked. If anyone had a problem with it, they could say it to her face and feel her wrath.

It was not like she was submissive like an omega was expected to be, like she had been forced to be so many years ago. She got on her knees when she wanted to. She chose to take Emma into her mouth. And she should not feel ashamed of either of those things because Emma was one of the best things in her life. To borrow a page from her ex, it was her honor to treat Emma and give Emma the best life she could. And that was that. Nothing she did was her ruin.

To prove her point, after finishing with dinner preparations, she made an apple cobbler. It would be dessert. _I’m happy with my family and I want them to know that_.

“Something smells delish,” Zelena said with a smile as she strolled into the kitchen.

Regina frowned. “Where’s Robbie?” One of the things that made Zelena tolerable was that she showed up with Robbie.

“Emma feels Robbie is of age to learn how to beat Henry at whatever game they’re playing.” Zelena waved the whole matter off and stalked around the kitchen.

Regina’s frown deepened. She liked holding Robbie, being with Robbie. She had a weak spot for children, but babies especially. She did not know if that was the omega in her or just her, and it did not matter. She hoped Emma did not take Robbie because she thought she ruined Regina and was trying to save her by keeping babies away from her.

“One second.” Regina stepped out of the kitchen, but did not make it to the living room. The sight in the living room stopped her in her tracks.

Emma had Robbie on her lap and was letting her play whatever the game was. Henry was pretending he could not work his controller. Robbie was in a fit of giggles while Emma and Henry grinned at her. Regina sighed contently. _I wish we could have another_. The weight of that settled on her shoulders and in her stomach and returned to the kitchen.

“What are we having for dinner?” Zelena asked as she picked up a pot top and peered inside. She did not take much of a look and replaced the top.

Regina arched an eyebrow. “When are you going to learn to cook?”

“I can cook.”

Regina’s face fell into a deadpan. “Yes, in a cauldron over an open fire, probably while chanting ‘double, double, toil and trouble.’ You need to learn to use a stove.”

Zelena scoffed and waved the whole matter off. “That’s why I have you, my dear sister.”

Regina rolled her eyes and turned away from Zelena, wanting to check on everything on the stove. After Zelena acknowledged she was an omega as well, she seemed to go out of her way to avoid omega things beyond caring for Robbie. Regina could understand why, but she also had little interest in playing Zelena’s servant.

“One day the Restaurant of Regina will be closed and then what will you do? Feed Robbie _Granny’s_?” Regina asked. She would rain down fire on Zelena if she did and they both knew that.

Zelena had the nerve to suck her teeth. “As if I would dare give my little one that so-called food.”

“Yes, so what are you going to do when I decide I’m on strike?” Not that she ever would. She enjoyed cooking, as it reminded her of making potions, and it was not like she could let Emma and Henry starve… or worse yet, eat dinner from a box or takeout.

Zelena sighed and dropped down on one of the counter stools. “Why is this even a question now? One day, should you decide to not cook, I suppose I’ll have to buckle down.” The words looked like they tasted sour in her mouth as she said them.

Regina smirked. “Stop. You make it sound like you love me or something.”

Zelena curled her lip and turned away for a moment. “Please. I wouldn’t dare.”

They laughed over this, but they both knew the truth. Zelena would never say it, but at this point, Regina knew she was her sister’s best friend. It was not the sister-sister relationship Regina would have wished for, but it was good.

Life was good, so who cared if she checked a few omega stereotypes? Most people probably did. She checked some alpha stereotypes as well, which was why it continued to be easy to play the alpha. It was just her personality. It had nothing to do with her sex and she refused to be embarrassed or ashamed. She spent too much of her life like that. It was time to simply enjoy the life she had.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma cackled as she had Robbie destroy Henry in _Madden_. Henry was terrible at sports games, but insisted on playing. She was fairly certain it was the only way he learned about sports in order to talk with his friends, who were into sports and also played sports’ video games. Robbie clapped and dropped the controller as she scored yet another touchdown.

“She is dusting you! Look at that score!” Emma said. Henry was stuck on zero while Robbie had scored three touchdowns in less than ten minutes of play.

Henry rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on. I think we both know you’re playing.”

“She’s totally got the remote. This is all Robbie,” Emma replied with a grin. Yes, she had scored those touchdowns, but she had no doubt Robbie could beat Henry at this game if she let the baby. Henry was just _that_ bad at it.

“Me!” Robbie patted herself on the chest with both hands.

Emma laughed more and hugged Robbie to her. “That’s right! You. You are dusting your cousin. Dusting him.”

“Rub it in a little more,” Henry grumbled, scowling at the floor as if trying to destroy it with his eyes.

Emma snickered. “Oh, come on. Like you don’t scream in my face when you start destroying my numbers in any shooting game.” He gloated with the best of them when he was winning.

“You’re the adult here, though.”

“Yeah, but the toddler is one kicking your butt.” Emma leaned over, making sure to keep hold of Robbie and tickled Henry.

Henry erupted into giggles and tried to escape, but ran out of couch. Emma was on him and Robbie, proving she was as evil as her mother and aunt, joined in, trying to tickle Henry. Robbie laughed right along with all of them. Henry screamed as he made a poor attempt of escaping.

“Okay, enough torturing of Henry. Dinner is ready,” Regina said from the dining room entrance.

Emma ignored her for a moment, getting in some last second tickles. Henry curled into himself, his face red, and body shaking with laughter. Robbie wiggled her little digits into his neck, making him laugh more. Regina sucked her teeth and stepped like she was about to take Robbie, but Emma was faster. She wanted a moment with the toddler, who was a hoot.

“Robbie, when did you get so fun?” Emma asked, playfully nipping at Robbie cheek.

Robbie laughed and clapped. “Fun!”

Emma grinned carried Robbie to the table. Regina helped Henry up, but her eyes lingered on Emma and it did not take much to know why. Emma usually avoided the babies for a lot of reasons. But, maybe it was all right. Holding Robbie did not make her think about what she missed out on with Henry. She could hope for the future, but did not feel any pings inside if she and Regina could not have another.

“Are you feeding her, too?” Zelena asked as Emma eased into her chair, dinner waiting.

Emma scoffed. “I’m not an idiot. I know what she does with food.”

As Robbie got older and went to solid foods, she wore most of her food. They had a high chair now and Emma handed Robbie over as Regina entered. Regina put Robbie in the chair and proceeded to feed her, as she tended to do whenever she was around Robbie. And Regina always looked so happy, like there was a light in her eyes. _How did I think she was ruined because of this?_ Even if Regina’s connection to Robbie and Little Guy, which was her _new_ new nickname for Leo as she saw how uncomfortable Regina got when Emma called him his middle name, was because she was an omega, she was happy. That was the important thing.

And Regina did not seem bothered by any of the omega things she liked. Emma tried to avoid any sort of alpha stereotype, as it might trigger something that made her turn into a jerk, while Regina embraced whatever seemed to be good about her personality, regardless of the stereotypes. But, then again, Regina was that way even when pretending to be an alpha. It was probably okay since being an omega was not the same as being an alpha as far as Emma was concerned.

“Emma, are you all right?” Regina asked.

Emma blinked. “Oh, yeah. I guess it took a lot out of me to watch Robbie kick Henry’s butt in so many aspects of life.” She snickered.

“You were cheating!” Henry gave her a friendly shove from the chair next to her.

“Some savior,” Zelena remarked from across the table.

“I don’t think I’ve ever claimed to be law and order around here,” Emma replied.

“Uh… you put on a badge that literally makes you that, Sheriff,” Zelena countered.

“She’s got you there, Ma,” Henry said.

Emma pretended to glare at her son. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, you don’t side with your aunt against me ever. That’s just downright betrayal.”

Zelena smirked. “He knows a winner when he sees her.”

“Okay, that’s it. I’m taking Robbie and raising her as my own.” Emma rubbed her hands together. “I might be able to get a kid who doesn’t betray me out of it.”

Zelena sucked her teeth. “Like Regina would want to co-parent another child with you.”

“Why not? I’m already co-parenting Robbie with you,” Regina remarked.

“Betrayals abound!” Zelena scowled, slapping her hands against the table.

They all had a good laugh, ate, and soon dinner was over. Dessert was served. Emma had never heard of an apple cobbler before, but it was as good as everything else Regina made. Emma was certain she would die fat and happy in this house, even with Zelena getting on her nerves.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina turned down the bed and slid into her side while Emma was busy trying to find the remote for the television. Regina did not say anything, but she told Emma to leave it on her nightstand almost every night. Obviously, Emma did not listen. Regina did not bother to help, as she preferred to not watch television in the bedroom.

“Why can’t you just read a book before bed?” Regina asked, which was what she did if they did not spend time cuddling or talking.

“Because I can’t,” Emma replied. She fell asleep to the television. She tried to claim she needed white noise, but it turned out she needed the television and it was something she had spoiled herself with when she got old enough to afford her own television. Regina could respect that, even if it annoyed her a little.

“Then, why can’t you put the remote on the nightstand?”

Emma let out a breath and ducked down to look under the bed. “Why can’t you stop making good suggestions?”

“Because it’s maddening watching you do this every single night.” Regina sighed. “How about you come to bed and we have a little talk?” She put her book down on her nightstand.

Emma popped back up with an arched eyebrow. “You mean like what the doctor was talking about?”

“Yes. We might as well start the conversation while it’s fresh in our minds.” Beyond that, she was curious about where their relationship was going. Did Emma have the same goals as she did? She hoped so.

Emma nodded. “Okay.” She gave up her quest for the remote and eased into bed. “So, what do you want to talk about?” She put her arm around Regina, caressing Regina’s bare arms with two fingers.

“Well, I’d like to badger you more about putting the remote back in one spot, but I’m sure that’ll go in one ear and out the other as it often does,” Regina commented.

Emma rolled her eyes. “You know, your ‘I told you so’ thing is really unattractive.”

“Tell that to the erection you’d get if I ordered you to put the remote on the nightstand rather than suggested it.”

“Well, there’s something wrong with me, we both know that.” Emma kissed the top of Regina’s head.

“This is true. But, since I don’t know all the details of everything wrong with you, we should talk about a few things Doctor Alexander brought up.”

“Like what?”

“Well, mating marks. That is in our future, correct?” Regina was not sure when, but she would love for Emma to bear her mark and she would proudly wear Emma’s, but not yet.

Emma nodded and her hand drifted up to Regina’s collarbone, as if that was where she planned to leave her mark. “Yeah. Um… not anytime soon, right?”

Regina resisted the urge to coo at the light contact. “No. If syncing is all about trust and building intimacy, I’d like to exchange marks sometime after we sync. First, I want us to go through a sync to see what it’s like. I don’t want to do it while we sync because we’ll always think it was in a moment of lust, no matter how romantic our doctors try to make syncing sound.”

Emma nodded and stroked Regina’s collarbone one last time before her hand went back to Regina’s arm. “I agree with that. I’d like to wait anyway. I mean, I’m certain you’re my mate and everything, but I’d like to wrap my head around having a mate before we make anything official.”

“I understand as well.” While she never had an official mate, what she had gone through with Daniel and with King Leopold, it would take her a while to work through the trauma and be able to commit to Emma completely.

“Anything we should do before we sync?” Emma scratched her head.

“I’d like to discuss any sexual fetishes that might come up. It was a little daunting to find out…” Regina trailed off, unsure of how to put it.

Emma grinned, too obvious in her amusement. “You like having your ass played with during my rut?”

Regina scowled. “Of course you’d put it that way.” She did not feel ashamed by this, but it was daunting to discuss, as she had no idea she liked such a thing until Emma. Maybe she had not liked it until Emma. She was not sure.

Emma scoffed. “Oh, please, like your mouth isn’t absolutely filthy under the right conditions.”

Regina could not deny it and snuggled in a little closer, plucking at Emma’s black tank top to keep her hands busy. “Are there any things you’d like to do sexually before we sync? I wouldn’t want us to do something new and then have the other worry if it was okay to do or not.”

Emma scratched her chin. “I’m not sure. I mean, I’m pretty happy with anything you wanna do.”

“So, you don’t have any fantasies or things you’d like to try before we end up doing it during our sync and then we’ll have to have an awkward conversation after?”

Emma’s brow furrowed as she focused on Regina’s face. “Why, do you have fantasies?”

Regina turned, pressed herself against Emma’s side even more, making sure she had Emma’s full attention. “Before we sync, so you know it’s not the lust talking, I’d like to try anal.”

Emma stiffened and swallowed so hard that Regina heard it. Hazel eyes were opened impossibly wide and for a second they darted around the room, like Emma wanted to escape. “I could… You want me… I would be able to…”

“Do you not want to?” Regina had not thought it would bother Emma much, as Emma had no problem putting her finger there.

Emma’s mouth moved, but no words came out for quite a while. “Yeah, I want to! I mean, if you want to, I’d totally be okay with doing that.”

Regina arched an eyebrow. “Are you sure? I don’t want you to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.”

“I’m not uncomfortable with it. I’m fine with it. I like that you like it and I wanna make you feel good. Besides, I think we both know how much I like your ass.” Emma’s hand slid down to the aforementioned body part.

Regina shivered as she felt Emma’s fingers at the curve of her ass. “The attention would be appreciated.”

“Oh, believe me, I know. I’m okay with anything you want to try.”

“But, is there anything you want to try?” Regina asked. She did not want this to end up being just about her. She wanted Emma to be able to explore things as well. In all of their time together, she was not sure Emma had ever suggested they do something in bed except during their cycles.

Emma scratched her chin. “Uh… honestly… um…”

Regina shifted and threw a leg over Emma’s hip. She sat up on Emma, straddling her. Emma’s hand never left her ass, which she did not mind. She cupped Emma’s cheeks to make Emma look at her. They stared into each other’s eyes.

“Emma, I need you to listen to me and understand, I’m not going to judge you any more than you judge me. Or do you judge me?” Regina never would have felt safe or comfortable exploring not just being an omega, but the pleasure from being filled in two places with anyone other than Emma. Was she not worth the same? _Why would you be?_

“Regina…” Emma ran her hand up and down Regina’s torso. “I don’t know _how_ to talk about this.”

Regina sighed and slumped slightly. “Oh. Okay. Never mind.” Why did she think she was worthy of trust? What had she ever actually done to earn it? In fact, she should have known her credibility was non-existent after being the Evil Queen.

“Regina, no.” Emma held her around the waist, keeping her in place. “I really don’t know how to talk about this. It’s not something against you. I trust you. It’s just, I’ve spent half of my life ashamed of my status and a little freaked out about sex because of it and also from being in prison.”

Regina frowned a little. “What does prison have to do with this?” They never talked about what happened to Emma in prison. In fact, there were large portions of their lives they had yet to talk about.

Emma blew out a breath. “Prison is a terrible place, Regina. I mean, I know you know about bad places and shit, but prison sucks and I don’t like talking about it. It just helped reinforce some of the BS I know about alphas and they suck. I don’t want you to worry that something happened to me, but I have seen some shit. I don’t want to do anything that might be like an alpha, so I don’t really have fantasies because I feel like I’d be taking advantage of my partner… of you.”

Regina could feel her expression soften. Emma cared about her and wanted to treat her right. She caressed Emma’s neck and cheek. As her thumb drifted close to Emma’s lips, Emma turned just enough to kiss Regina’s thumb. Regina ran her thumb across Emma’s lips as Emma kissed the digit several more times. 

“I want you to become comfortable with yourself and with our relationship to have fantasies. To want things, just as I want things. Do you think before you I was comfortable with the idea of someone touching my ass, let alone going inside?” Regina inquired with an arched eyebrow.

Emma sighed. “No, since you were an alpha at the time.”

“Exactly. I’ve been able to explore this part of myself for the first time with you. I want you to explore yourself with me. So, maybe not right now, but, please think of something you’d like to try. I would be honored to try it with you.”

Emma scrunched up her face. “I have wondered what it would be like if I really was a beta.”

Regina’s mouth twitched as she held back a smirk. “So, you’ve had fantasies about having a vagina?” It was not surprising considering how Emma felt about being an alpha.

Emma’s face twisted a little more, like she was in deep concentration. “Yeah, I mean, what would that be like, right? Is it different for you? You’ve had sex with both parts. Which one do you prefer?”

Regina shook her head. “I can’t really compare the two. Me as an alpha was all about taking what I wanted and letting people know who was the boss. Me as an omega is being with you and finding peace with my mate.”

“I get that. I mean, I’ve had sex a few times in my life, but it really only feels okay when I’m with you. I feel okay with you.”

Regina smiled a little, taking that in the way Emma meant it rather than the way it sounded. “I’m glad. If you want, I could change your body for you to experience sex as a beta.”

Emma nodded. “And… um… maybe… you could be the alpha.”

Regina was intrigued and certain Emma had thought about this before. She would have to work on getting Emma comfortable with sharing any sexual desires she had. “If that’s what you want, I would be quite happy to do this with you.”

“What I’d really like to do before we sync is maybe date more.”

Regina blinked. “Date?” It had not occurred to her that they should date. They already had a family together and a thriving sex life. They had made a home. Well, maybe Emma had been added to her home, but it felt like they were together forever now. “We’re doing things quite backwards, are we not?”

“Well, at least we didn’t exchange mating marks during our first time, right?” Emma gave her a lopsided grin.

Regina reared back a little and scowled down at Emma. “I would have never done such a thing. I didn’t even know you.”

“Knew me well enough to let me hit that all night.” Emma gave her ass a playful squeeze.

Regina gnashed her teeth at Emma. “Keep it up and you’ll never hit that again.”

Emma laughed. “I think we both know that’s not true. Hey, were you okay with going to the doctor today? I never asked and then we got home and life took over and then we got to talking about this, but we never talked about the actual visit.”

Regina waved the whole thing off. “I’m fine, maybe a little anxious about her doing tests to see if I can conceive. I mean, we know I can outside of Storybrooke, but what about here? Have we beat my spell and if so, how?”

“Good point. Maybe my swimmers are just that good.”

Regina groaned. “You’re awful. You and your swimmers.” Hopefully, her “swimmers” had not been damaged by her drug use.

Emma chuckled and gave her a squeeze around the waist. “I’m awesome. That’s how we ended up with a kid, after all.”

“Yes, you did all the work there. Anyway, if possible, do you want more children?” Regina was certain she knew the answer to that, but she wanted to hear it without Emma’s rut clouding her senses or Regina’s heat making her want it.

“I’d totally like to have pups with you, Regina. If Henry is all we ever get, I’m okay with that, but if we can, I’d like maybe one or two. Is that okay?”

Regina felt tears pricking her eyes, but kept them at bay. “I would love one or two more. We should discuss that with Henry eventually.”

“Right, don’t want him to feel some kind of way over things.”

“And we should definitely do it after his birthday celebration.” If the conversation took a left turn, she would rather it be after he had his special moment.

“Definitely. Um… you think we’ll be able to have kids if you can beat your spell? What if I’m the problem now?” Emma asked with a frown. She looked down at the bed and shook her head. “I mean, all the drugs and everything.”

“You’re not a problem. You were on the drugs when we conceived Henry.”

“Yeah, well, you were on the spell when we conceived Henry. And I had only been on the drugs about three or four years at that point. Now, I’d been on them for fifteen. That’s a huge difference.”

Regina caressed Emma’s cheek. “You’ll be fine. You’re in top physical condition, even if some things were stunted when you were younger.”

Emma’s face remained tense. “Regina, I appreciate you trying to make me feel better, but you wanted me to go to the doctor because I’ve been on drugs for half of my life and I’ve never been to the doctor before. I’m gonna worry, so stop trying to make me feel better.”

Regina sighed. “First off, I’ll never stop trying to make you feel better. I always want you to feel as good as possible. I didn’t take you to the doctor because I wanted you to worry.”

“I know. You wanted to make sure I was all right and I appreciate that. No one’s ever bothered to do it before. I really appreciate that. I mean, I love you already, but I love you more for that. You make me feel like I’m worth something.”

And there went the tears, spilling out of the corner of her eyes. “You are worth something. You’re worth so much.” It hurt to know people had drifted through Emma’s life and had not let her know she was worth everything.

Emma reached up and gently wiped away a couple of the tears. “I’m worth something to you and it’s good enough. I mean, I never felt like this. I think one of the reasons I stayed in Storybrooke is because it gave me some self-worth, like these people need me. But, with you, it’s beyond that because you don’t need me. You _want_ me.”

Regina leaned down, needing to kiss Emma. “Always.” She needed Emma to understand that, so Emma knew it was all right to share whatever she needed to with Regina.

Emma gave her another squeeze around the waist. “I want you, too. So, anytime I say I don’t know how to talk about something, it’s not me rejecting you. I’d never reject you. I just… it’s hard for me, a lot.”

Regina did not understand. This was not easy for her either, but she decided against bringing that up. Emma was just as likely to shut down with her as open up it seemed. She did not want to chance a shut down.

Emma licked her lips and caressed Regina’s neck while the other settled against her ass again. “I know that’s not the best explanation, but I’m really trying. I love you, Regina. I want to be your mate. I want to be your best possible mate. I know I have a long way to go, which is one of the reasons why I want to date you. I want to romance you and all of that stuff. I think it’ll help me get better and you deserve all the romancing I can muster.”

Regina could not help chuckling. Emma did not realize how alpha that sounded and she would not be the one to break it to her. Emma seemed like she had a long way to go with being an alpha and Regina wanted to help her relax and accept her status.

“I want to romance you as well. You also deserve all of the romancing I can muster,” Regina said. Emma deserved everything she could give her and more.

“Then, I guess we’ll just be romancing each other,” Emma said with a smirk that proclaimed her oh, so clever. Regina rolled her eyes and also rolled off of Emma. “But, you’ve got me beat there already, you know?”

“I do?” Regina was not sure how that was since she had not tried romancing Emma in any way yet.

Emma turned onto her side to face Regina. “Yeah, during my rut, you were totally romantic, especially at the end with the pancake date. That was great, especially since it showed you listen to me. I want to do things like that for you.”

“You do plenty for me, like allow me a second chance.” She would never be able to thank Emma enough to allow her the opportunity the life she had always wanted, but thought died with Daniel.

“Well, I want to do that and take you out for dinners and stuff.”

Regina smiled a little. She would enjoy that. “I think we’ve given each other more than enough to think about.”

Emma nodded. It had to be more than enough because Emma did not even go back to looking for the remote. She gathered Regina up in her arms, so Regina did not bother with going back to her book. What would she need to do to help Emma accept her sexual status? It was good to know it was not a matter of trust, but it still felt a little personal. Being with Emma had been enough for her to come to terms with being an omega. Why was that not enough for Emma? _You can’t compare her to you. That’s not fair. Just do what you can, like romancing her_. _You have to make sure she knows she’s wanted and she’s cared for._

-8-8-8-8-

Emma got off the phone with Doctor Aye and sighed. It was not particularly good news, but it was not bad either. She was healthy. He wanted her to come in, so he could test her sperm count and he wanted a sample of the drugs she had been on. It was out of her blood and urine. The hair sample had not come back yet and the drug itself would be as good, maybe better to get a real understanding of things. But, she was not going to drop dead in a month, so she chalked it up as a good thing. She did not have any diseases and still had all her teeth, which was more than some people who spent half their lives taking drugs could say.

She decided it was a cause for celebration. She wanted to romance Regina and date her, so any excuse was a good excuse. Regina was distracted, trying to plan out Henry’s birthday celebration. Emma did not think it was necessary, as Henry described what he wanted as something simple. Emma would not complain since it gave her chance to set up a candle-light dinner right under Regina’s nose! She also got a chance to slip Henry some money, so he could go hang out with his friends for a little while.

Thankfully, it was not too cold, so she set everything up on the patio. She was giddy by the time she went to get Regina, who was on the phone, trying to bargain down a skywriter to write “Happy Birthday Henry” on his birthday. Zelena had pointed out the obvious earlier and got sent home. Why not just use magic? Not wanting to banished as well, Emma had to keep from asking, “How is skywriting simple?”

“Regina, when you’re done, can you just come to the backyard for a second? I want you to see something,” Emma said.

Regina sighed and ended the call without any concern for hanging up on someone. “I’m done. I can’t believe the price that man wants to charge.” She tossed her cell phone onto the sofa.

“You could probably afford it.”

“I could, but he was extorting me. I won’t let him or anyone else get away with it.”

“Well, it’s good you didn’t give in then. Come with me.” Emma extended her hand and Regina wasted no time taking it.

Regina did not resist and followed her to the backyard. Regina stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the table. Emma smiled to herself.

“Emma, it’s too cold to sit outside for dinner,” Regina objected.

“It’s not that cold and I got this for you.” Emma grabbed a hoodie off of the back of a chair and draped it over Regina’s shoulders. It was one of her old hoodies from when she lived in Boston. She waited a tick to see if Regina would reject it.

Regina pulled the hoodie closer and if Emma was not mistaken, she pulled it close to her nose for a brief inhale. Emma preened internally, loving the idea of Regina enjoying her scent. It helped that her hoodie was enough for Regina to stay outside with her. She pulled Regina’s chair out for her and pushed it in once Regina was down. She had never done that before and felt good inside from it. She grinned from ear to ear by the time she sat down across from Regina.

“What did you make?” Regina asked. Their plates were covered, even though there were not many insects around with the chill sneaking into the air, especially at night.

“I’m not great in the kitchen like you, but I’m pretty good with chicken cutlets.” Emma took the paper towel from over both of their plates. She made breaded chicken cutlets with white rice and green beans. It was not fancy by far and she was a little nervous, as she had never cooked for a girlfriend or partner or anyone beyond herself and Henry.

“It looks delicious. You know, beyond cooks throughout my life, no one has ever cooked for me,” Regina said.

Emma smiled and puffed up. “I wanted to pay you back a little since you always cook for me. No one has ever done that for me either. Well, not for a long time anyway.”

“I like cooking for you.”

“And I liked cooking for you. I’m going to do it more in the future.”

“I look forward to it.” Regina grabbed her knife and started cutting up her cutlet.

“You want wine? I bought some to go with the food.”

Regina looked up at her with wide eyes. “You did? Well, then, yes, I would love some.”

Emma opened the new bottle of wine and poured some for her and for herself. “I used to like this when I lived in Boston the second time.”

“Was that a happy time for you?” Regina asked.

“Yeah. Except for the loneliness, I was probably at the best point I was in my life until right now. I was living a clean and honest life. I was supporting myself for the most part. I think I’m doing a lot better now. I mean, I got a good job and my family.” Emma tipped her glass to Regina.

“Yes. Agreed.” Regina leaned in and tapped their glasses.

“I’ve got my health,” Emma added.

Regina stared at her for a moment. “Did Doctor Aye call you?”

“He did. He said technically I’m under developed and probably did stunt my growth, but I’m as healthy as I look. He was really happy I didn’t have liver or kidney damage from the drug use. I was happy to know that, too.”

Regina smiled. “And I’m now happy to know that as well.” She began to sample the food.

“I’m sorry I messed up the chance to be bigger, though.” Emma glanced down at her lap. According to Aye, she was the size of the average beta male. He probably told her that to make her feel better, but it did not. For the first time in her life, her size mattered to her.

Regina waved that off. “You’re fine, Emma. I’m quite happy with length and girth.”

Emma grinned. “Oh, so you like my dick?”

Regina frowned. “Do you have to be so immature all the time? Did the drugs stunt that as well?”

Emma stuck her tongue out at Regina before realizing that sort of proved her point. “Whatever. You like me.”

“Getting less and less at the moment. Good thing you made food or I’d walk out right now.”

Emma rolled her eyes before she started in on her meal. “Yeah, okay. How do you like the wine?”

“It’s good. Good to celebrate your good health. Anything else from Doctor Aye?”

“He’s waiting to hear back about the hair samples to see if he can figure out the drug I was taking and he still wants me to get a sample for him. He also wants to do a sperm count, which is also related to the drug use. I’ll worry about that after Henry’s birthday. Has Doctor Alex called you about anything?”

Regina’s frown deepened. “The spell stands. She was actually impressed by my potion. Not to brag, but potions have always been my real talent and here it is standing in our way.”

Emma shook her head. “It’s not standing in our way. I don’t mind if we don’t have any more kids. Did she say how we made Henry, then? I mean, if you’re so talented, how did we beat your talent?” 

“I’m going to assume you didn’t mean that the way it sounded. She assumes we were able to have Henry because we were out in the ‘real’ world. Physically, there is no reason why I can’t have children, which led her to wonder why I haven’t had children before Henry, even though she always felt stress and my weight were issues.” As if to prove she was in control her own weight now, she shoved some food in her mouth.

Emma’s forehead wrinkled. “Your weight?”

“I had been underweight for most of my life. My mother always monitored what I ate and made sure I weighed a certain amount. Leopold also monitored what I ate, liking me at a certain weight. Even when Doctor Alexander went to him personally and told him to change my diet, he refused.”

“She was your doctor when you were married?” It was the only time Regina would have had a chance to be pregnant.

“Yes, for a while. She was eventually fired since I never conceived. Leopold blamed her, even though he refused to follow any of her advice, while the Court blamed me. Of course, I was happy to never conceive. I didn’t want to carry his child.” She shook her head at the very idea. “That was the only wish I ever had that came true.”

Emma nodded and took in the words not said. Regina was fine with carrying _her_ child, though. It was hard not to feel special there. Regina was happy to be an omega around her as well, but no one else.

“Well, when we’re ready for more children, we can just go on vacation outside Storybrooke. We could go back to Boston. I could show you the pancake spot. We could even go back to the hotel you stayed at and recreate that first night,” Emma said and the more she spoke the more that appealed to her.

Regina smirked. “Careful, Emma, that sounds like a sexual fantasy.”

“Maybe it is. I’m allowed, right?” She wanted to explore things now that she was allowed to, but she did not know what. Sex had never been a thing for her until Regina. The few times she had it, she had been worried over suddenly “going all alpha” and that made it hard to enjoy anyone.

“Oh, I hope you have many more.” Regina’s eyes sparkled as she let the fork linger between her lips.

Emma groaned and tried to ignore the thump in her stomach. She felt like it was safe to have those sort of fantasies, but she did not want to get carried away. She did not want to share anything that might be degrading to Regina. She did not want to do anything that made it seem like she did not respect Regina. She did not want to do anything to seem like one of those alpha assholes she had met throughout her life.

“How’s the food?” Emma asked.

“Better than I expected of you.”

Emma made an exaggerated wince. “Ouch.”

“I’m just being honest and I did say better. It’s good.”

Emma sat up taller. “Well, I’m glad you like it. How’s it going with Henry’s birthday, beyond the skywriting? Are you keeping it simple or going all out?”

Regina’s shoulders dropped a little, which said it all. “I want this to be special. I mean, it’s his first birthday with us as a united family. I know he says he just wants a simple family gathering, but I want to give him so much more.”

Emma nodded. “I think that’s noble of you, but maybe we should just do something in the house or the backyard if it’s nice enough. Bigger doesn’t have to mean better, Regina. I mean, when you were younger, wouldn’t you just like to have a good day rather than something decked with streamers and fireworks or whatever?”

Regina sat silent for a long moment and Emma feared she might have said the wrong thing. “You’re right. I am probably doing too much, but I want the day to be special.”

Emma reached across the table and patted Regina’s hand. “It will be, Regina. We’ll all be there. His whole family will be there and we won’t be fighting each other. I think we’ll all like that and it’ll be special to all of us.”

Regina sighed. “You’re right.”

“Oh, can we take a selfie to mark this day?” Emma went so far as to pull out her phone.

Regina huffed and rolled her eyes, but there was a smile on her face. Emma was more proud to make Regina smile than anything else. The date seemed to be going well. She took the selfie, but to commemorate the date, not because she was right.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina felt contented with life as she was wrapped in Emma’s hoodie. She hated to think how she was about to turn into one of those television girlfriends because this hoodie was hers now. The scent of Emma all around her was too much for her to not keep the sweathood.

“Sorry desert wasn’t as original as dinner,” Emma said. She made ice cream sundaes. Regina had a good time making a show of licking her spoon. She was delighted with Emma’s commitment to their date and her self-control, as Emma managed to avoid an erection, no matter how much Regina tried.

“It was fine. This whole thing was amazing and perfect.” It was delightful end to a frustrating day. Regina was able to move on from her disaster of trying to get the perfect day together for Henry. Emma did not know how much she helped Regina.

“I’m glad. So, it’s a good thing dating me, yeah?”

“Very good. I hope you plan to clean up, too.”

Emma’s face fell. “Yeah, I guess. It’s only fair.”

Regina smiled. While Emma cleaned up, she could go prepare a proper thank you for her partner. She went to the bedroom and stripped off everything, but then put the hoodie back on. She was not sure if Emma was going to come up to the room any time soon, so she sent Emma a text that she needed help with something.

“What’s up, Regina? I’m trying to clean up. What do you need help with?” Emma asked as she stepped into the room.

“The zipper…” Regina had the hoodie zipped all the way up, but slowly dragged it down as Emma stared at her.

Emma’s eyes went right to the zipper and followed it until Regina stopped halfway. Emma’s mouth moved a couple of times before she managed to say something. “It’s stuck? Sometimes that happens.”

Regina smirked. They both knew that did not happen. “Can you help me?”

Emma wasted no time coming to her, kissing her as soon as she could. Regina moaned at the feel of Emma’s lips and tongue. Emma pulled down the zipper and her hands were on Regina’s sides immediately. Those perfect hands caressed and stroked her torso before settling on her breasts. She reached out, grabbing at Emma’s shirt and pulling it from tucked inside her pants. She worked the buttons with skilled finger and sighed when she able to feel flesh.

“Lemme take this off,” Emma said, pulling away just enough to get out of her shirt. Regina helped her out of her belt and opened her pants for her. She shoved Emma’s pants down, but Emma finished the job, almost falling over as she stepped out of the tight jeans.

“Do you need those?” Regina motioned to Emma’s underwear.

Emma was out of the boxer-briefs in a flash and back to kissing Regina just as quickly. Emma’s hands were back on her body and it felt as amazing as always. Regina moaned into Emma’s mouth and hands went out for Emma, one cupping her breast and the other gripping her length. Emma jerked in her hand.

“This is perfect, like it was made for me,” Regina whispered against Emma’s lips as Emma panted. She was not just saying that. She needed Emma to understand, she enjoyed Emma’s body.

Emma groaned and squeezed Regina’s breasts. “Fuck, Regina.”

“That’s the point, dear.” Regina nipped Emma’s bottom lip.

Emma’s response was to give Regina’s breasts another squeeze, adding a gently tug to Regina’s nipples. Regina’s hand paused, stars dancing before her eyes. Emma took the brief distraction to launch a counter to Regina’s hand and slid her fingers through Regina’s parted legs. That jump-started Regina’s brain and her hand got back to work. They exchanged soft kisses and leisurely touched each other. Emma’s thumb made little circles on Regina’s clit, so Regina mimicked the motion at the head of Emma’s cock.

“I should take off your hoodie,” Regina said. She did not want to ruin the wonderful scent Emma left all over it.

“No, you look cute in it. I like it,” Emma replied.

“But…” There was no way Emma’s smell would survive them having sex with her in this hoodie. It would smell like them, which could be nice, but she would rather have the brilliant Emma aroma.

Emma smiled, as if she knew. “I’ve got other hoodies. Some even older than this one. Nice and baggy. Perfect for relaxing in.”

Regina shivered. “I want them,” she admitted in a breath.

“My wardrobe is your wardrobe. Now, come here.” Emma pulled Regina, making her drop to the bed, her back on the mattress.

Regina found herself giggling as Emma settled in between her legs, cockhead bumping against Regina’s clit. Emma put Regina’s leg on her hip as she took herself into her hand, lining up with Regina. They stared into each other’s eyes and Regina gave a small nod. Moaning loudly and throwing her head to the side, Regina clutched Emma’s sides as Emma sank into her.

“Fuck, you feel so good,” Emma said.

“You’re so perfect, made for me.” Regina was convinced of that. Every single time she was with Emma, it was pure heaven. It never felt this before and she suspected that was more emotional than physical. But, physically, Emma hit spots inside of her she had not been aware of until Emma.

Emma’s response was to pump her hips faster. Regina’s mouth fell open as sparks flashed under her skin, running up and down every nerve ending in her body. Emma took hold of Regina’s waist, tilting her upward, so she could go deeper. Regina could hardly contain herself already and then Emma brought her thumb to Regina’s clit. It only took a few more powerful strokes before Regina was washed beneath a wave of ecstasy, crying out for all she was worth.

“Fuck, you grip me so good when you come,” Emma hissed.

Regina could only focus on the orgasm that seemed to continue on with each move of Emma’s hips and thumb. The waves lessened, never actually going away, Regina was able to reach out, hand making it to Emma’s breast. With a little squeeze, Emma’s hips jumped and she moved even faster.

“Emma. Emma. Emma,” Regina begged, pleaded, longed for something she could not put into words. Her brain could only think of one word, the one she chanted like it would save her life. “Emma. Emma. Emma.”

Emma seemed to read her mind, or at least her pleas. One hand went from Regina’s waist and gave her ass a firm slap. Regina could not help the obscene moan that escaped her throat or the fact she got wetter. Emma gave her another pop and Regina gushed from it. Damn it, it felt so good!

“Emma,” Regina whined.

“Can you feel how you’re pulsing around me? Fucking fantastic,” Emma groaned, slamming into Regina enough to make her body shake.

Regina cried out and clawed at Emma’s body, leaving dark red lines on her sides. Fucking fantastic was a good way to describe this. And it only got better after a third slap, Emma’s finger slipped into her ass. Seeing stars hardly covered the epic display as colors flashed before her eyes like fireworks as pleasure erupted through her. She felt like she might have passed out, but she could feel Emma giving her gentle kisses to her lips. She returned the show of affection with a slow, linger touch of her lips.

“Hey, babe, I wanna try something if you’re up to it,” Emma said.

“What?”

“I’m not gonna last too much longer, but since we got the house to ourselves for right now and you seem to be in a screaming mood, what if we try that thing you wanted to do?”

Regina’s mouth went dry. She was not sure if she would be able to survive that if she had a third orgasm just as powerful as that last one. But, then again, she was not sure how an orgasm would feel if Emma was not inside of her vagina. Could she even orgasm that way?

“You wanna do that?” Emma whispered, lovingly kissing Regina’s shoulder.

“Yes,” Regina breathed. She wanted to try any and everything right now.

“Okay.” Emma leisurely pumped her finger in and out of Regina, her hips in time with it.

Regina cooed. “Emma…” She clutched Emma’s biceps and moved with her.

“Can you… just on the side?”

Regina nodded. It took more brain cells than she had to dedicate to moving to do as requested, but Emma helped, though it got a disappointed groan from her. The slender finger had to leave as Emma pushed her further onto the bed and eased her onto her side. Then, the finger was back and soon joined by another. Regina felt like she might go out of her mind, reaching out for Emma with hand and the other tugging at her own breast, pinching her nipple with a vengeance. Two was the most they had ever done and that was rare as Regina tended to come from just one.

“Gonna put another in, okay?” Emma said. “Lemme know if it hurts. I don’t think we need lube because you always get so nice and wet, but we have some if you need it.”

All Regina could do was nod, barely understanding what Emma told her. This already felt incredible to the point where it seemed like all the world. She could not imagine what another finger would feel like. The pressure of Emma trying to fit another finger made her lightheaded and she squealed when the third finger slid in. Emma halted her movements.

“You okay?” Emma asked.

“Don’t stop!” Regina cried. She felt like she would lose her mind if Emma stopped down. Or maybe she was already losing her mind. How could anything feel this good?

Emma’s hips did not move, but her fingers did and it was enough. Regina panted, face planted in the mattress, just _feeling_. Each push and pull of those wonderful fingers was like a miracle in Regina’s body. 

Regina was not sure how long this went on, but then she was suddenly empty. She whined, even as she felt herself dripping down her thigh and onto the blanket. Before she could muster enough thoughts to actually say something, she felt Emma nudging against her. She screamed the moment Emma pushed inside. Emma halted all movement.

“Are you all right?” Emma said, panic laced in her voice.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.” Tears burned Regina’s eyes, but she reached back and squeezed Emma’s hip. She breathed through her mouth, mind drowning in sensation. “It’s too much…”

“I’ll pull out.”

“Don’t you fucking dare!” Regina was not sure she would survive this, but she would rather die after feeling Emma move than to have her pull out. “I just need a moment…” She released another long breath through her mouth. It was too much, but also more than enough and she felt something beyond pleasure.

“Okay.” Emma caressed Regina’s side, thigh to shoulder at first and then breasts and stomach. Her hand eventually wandered down to Regina’s clit, caressing it gently.

Regina’s body moved on its own, pushing back against Emma. “Please, Emma. Please.”

Emma experimentally moved and Regina groaned, mumbling swear words into the sheets. Emma was hardly any better, grunting and growling things that were hardly any language. With each buck of her hips, Emma’s thumb glided across Regina’s clit and pulled her deeper into ecstasy until she drowned in it. An ocean of rapture flooded her and she clawed at the bed as she screamed again. She lost complete and total focus for more time than she liked and when she came to, Emma was pressed against her, panting in her ear.

“Emma?” Regina’s voice was barely a whisper.

“Yeah?”

“That was perfect.” She would be sore tomorrow, but for the moment, it was perfection. “Did you…?”

“I am. No knot, though. I didn’t want to hurt you.” Emma’s hand rested on Regina’s stomach.

Regina nodded. “Gonna sleep.” It was the only thing she could do.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: a family gathering with a special guest, who does not want to be there.


	3. Ohana

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters; Disney/ABC does.
> 
> Public Service Announcement: there is no sex in this chapter. I thought it would take away rather than add to the chapter.

 

3: Ohana

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Emma asked as she stepped into the backyard with Regina. The warm air embraced her and put a smile on her face. The weather was kind enough to cooperate with them to have a cookout for Henry’s birthday. Emma was ready to try her hand at working a grill, even though her father had already called dibs. She would like to see him to try to call dibs on her in her own house!

“Have the party in the backyard? No, but it’s not up to me. You made that clear,” Regina said, surveying the landscape one last time. There were streamers and balloons along with a picnic area set up. A small mountain of gifts were stacked on round table.

“Look, if the kid wants simple, keep it simple. It’s not that hard, so don’t make me the bad guy for backing him up. But, that’s not what I mean,” Emma replied.

Emma did not get a chance to explain as the doorbell sounded and Regina was off to greet their guests. Emma went to man her station. There were already burgers waiting by the grill, so she got to work. She had watched a few Youtube tutorials yesterday, not wanting to ruin the day, so she felt some confidence in being able to get this done. She could hear her parents come in, but saw her brother speed into the yard, as much as a toddler could speed. Regina had set up a little play area for him and Robbie with a playhouse, slide, and other toys.

“Neal, be careful!” She heard her mother call.

“He’s fine, Mom!” Emma shouted.

“Emma!” Little Guy squealed at the top of his lungs. Surely, the people on the moon heard him. Since he started talking… well, screaming really, Emma often wondered if she had been as loud as a child. Henry was not… at least in her second set of memories.

“Hey, Little Guy!” She leaned down to ruffle his hair. Little Guy snickered and pushed her hand away while tripping over himself to get away as he knew tickles would come soon if he did not escape.

He stuck his tongue out at her before escaping to the corner with the little playhouse. Emma turned her attention back to the burgers as her parents came into the backyard, arms full of gifts. Of course they would go all out. But, she was in no position to talk. She got Henry over ten gifts and that was not counting what she bought with Regina. She knew it might come across as trying to buy him, but a lot of it was stuff she would have liked as a child and could not have. She wanted Henry to have everything she could not. _To be fair, he has you beat already, both parents, loving home, family that loves him, and he’s only just turned thirteen_.

“I’m going to get Henry,” Regina said from the doorway and she turned back into the house before anyone could say anything to her.

David ambled on up to the grill with a stupid grin on his face. It was a little funny to find out she inherited his grin, too. “Why don’t you let me handle this?”

Emma scoffed, focused on her duty. If something went wrong today, it would not be her fault. “Why don’t you go get your own backyard and grill?”

His face fell. “Why can’t you share?”

“Because I don’t want to.” Emma stuck her tongue out at him. Any other time, he probably would have laughed, but his shoulders dropped this time.

“How can you deprive your own father a chance to work a grill?”

“I’m sure you have more than enough cookouts in your Cursed memories to hold you over. I don’t even have Cursed memories of doing this.”

It was David’s turn to make a face, twisting his mouth downward as he stuck his tongue out. “That doesn’t count. It didn’t really happen.”

She shrugged that off. “But, at least you have the memory. I don’t even have that.”

Before he could try to argue, Henry popped up, greeting his grandparents with a hug each. He barely left David’s side before Zelena appeared, presents at her feet and Robbie in her arms. She rushed to him, engulfing him in a hug with Robbie in her arms. Henry laughed and Robbie followed his lead.

“Happy birthday!” Zelena grinned. Emma had not expected her to be so happy about it, but Zelena genuinely looked over the moon. Robbie made noises, possibly to mimic her mother.

Henry groaned in the crushing embrace, but a smile never felt his face. “Thanks, Aunt Zelena.”

The party was underway and was nice. Regina brought out some finger foods and salads as they waited for the first round of grilled foods. She fed Emma a couple of baby carrots before going to supervise Zelena on how to stack her gifts on the table. Maleficent blew in with Lily not too long after. Emma did not usually mind Maleficent, but today the hairs on the back of her neck stood up as Maleficent embraced Regina. It was not the first time, but there was something that seemed to linger. Emma shook it off.

“Thank you for having me and Lily, Henry,” Maleficent said, giving Henry a hug after Regina.

“It’s okay. I know you and Mom are close and I’m glad for it. We all deserve a family,” Henry replied with a grin.

Emma agreed with that, so she did not say anything about Maleficent standing suspiciously close to Regina. She also did not cause a fuss about Lily being there. While she and Lily would never be the best of friends, Regina was close to her and Maleficent. Well, she was getting close to Lily along with Maleficent. Emma had not really inquired why, as she did not want it to seem like she was policing Regina’s friends. That was serious BS alpha behavior and she refused it.

“All right, so I’ve got hot dogs, if anybody wants,” Emma announced as she began unloading the hot dogs into the pan.

“They better be burnt!” Henry rushed over for the first one, which Emma felt was fine since it was his birthday.

“I hope that one is burnt enough for you.” Emma pointed to one still on the grill. It was almost black all over. Henry let her know earlier how he liked his hot dogs and she aimed to please.

“Perfect.” Henry held up two thumbs.

Emma grinned and was more than happy to watch as everyone downed a hot dog. Regina gave her a smile, as if saying she did good. She felt more confident as she watched the burgers and then Regina came, adding different pieces of chicken to the grill along with a few kabobs. Emma was happy to work and focused on the meat, but noticed Regina with Maleficent out of the corner of her eye. There was nothing too sketchy about them, but they seemed to be sitting a little close and Maleficent was leaning in. Emma shook it away.

 _No need to get jealous, Emma_. Regina loved her and, if she wanted to be with Maleficent, she had decades to do that. Was Maleficent even an alpha? Did it matter? Well, Maleficent certainly knew Regina was an omega since she knew Regina back when Regina was married to the King. What if…?

Emma really wanted to stop her train of thought, but her brain was too quick for her. What if Lily was Regina’s daughter with Maleficent? Maleficent being an alpha certainly made sense, but she quickly shook that thought away, as it did not make any sense. Regina said she had never conceived before Henry and Emma believed her. _So, cool out. Let Regina have friends and don’t act like a stupid, jealous alpha_.

Emma checked back in mentally just in time to catch the chicken from burning. It was a good thing, too, as David was hovering by, clearly ready to step in if she messed up. She waved the tongs at him.

“Dad, why don’t you go bother someone else? I got this,” Emma said.

David laughed. “I don’t doubt it, but you might need a break and I could jump in for a few minutes.”

“I just started. I got this.”

“Ma, can you burn another hot dog for me? Please!” Henry looked at her with big eyes.

“Of course. You’re only turn thirteen once, so you have to gorge on hot dogs… I think.” Emma shrugged. It was something she would have enjoyed at thirteen.

“Yes!” Henry pumped his fist. “You hear that, Mom? I can eat all the hot dogs I want because I’m thirteen!”

Emma’s eyes went wide. “Dude, how about not shouting that to the world? Do you want your mom to punish us both?”

Henry snickered, but ducked behind Emma as Regina gave them both her patented stare with an arched eyebrow. They were saved from a verbal reprimand as Ruby arrived with Granny and Dorothy. It was all fun and lighthearted until the last guest arrived. The tap of his cane echoed as Gold made his way through the house to the backyard with Belle on his arm. Regina was behind them, having to answer the door for their arrival.

“Well, isn’t think cozy?” Gold sneered as he took in the other guests.

“Grandpa, you made it!” Henry threw open his arms and riding a high of a happy birthday, actually hugged Gold. Emma doubted anyone else in history would be so brave.

Gold did not look pleased with the embrace, awkwardly patting Henry on the back and stepped away as soon as possible. Belle saved the moment, visibly gushing and going in for a hug. It was a little weird, as she and Henry were never super-close, but she seemed tickled. It might have something to do with just being included in a family. Emma knew the power of that. Hell, everyone there probably knew the power of that.

Well, everyone except Gold maybe. He sat there like they were holding him hostage while everyone else was trying to have a good time. He appeared especially offended whenever Zelena said something. He had some nerve. Emma decided to put a halt to that before Gold ruined her son’s first birthday with his whole family.

“Regina,” Emma said, waving her over from the congenial chatter around the picnic table.

Regina came over without even a questioning look, like she knew what was up. “Yes?”

“Should we talk to Gold? I mean, he looks like he’s about stab Zelena with a plastic cup.” Emma tried to keep her voice was low, but she took a glance over at everyone to make sure they did not suspect something was up. They seemed like they were actively entertained by the wild tale Dorothy was spinning with Zelena chiming in every few seconds. Apparently, Oz was an exciting place.

Regina cut a glance over to the table. “That might be for the best. I suspected we’d have to talk to him after we sent that invitation.”

“I still think that was stupid.” Gold was not known for being understanding or reasonable, after all. Even if he did not know Henry was not related to him yet, it was only a matter of time and he would undoubtedly react poorly.

“I am very aware of what you think, but Henry still considers Rumple his grandfather and for all we know Rumple might still consider Henry his grandson, even as the truth slowly leaks out.”

Emma gnawed her bottom lip for a moment. The truth was getting out a lot slower than she and Regina assumed, like Snow was actually able to keep a secret. The rumors really did not start until people saw them coming out of Doctor Alexander’s office, but most of those rumors speculated on Emma being pregnant again. While Doctor Alexander specialized in omegas, she was an OBGYN, so she had beta patients as well. The only other thing that got people talking was Emma’s appetite.

She finally understood what Regina meant about her appetite increasing. She ordered twice as much lunch when she went out and it never occurred to her, even when Ruby made jokes. Now, there came whispered comments about her “eating for two.” There were going to be a lot of people disappointed she was not showing in six months. Was Gold sold on those lies or did he have other suspicions? Not that it mattered since his immediate problem seemed to be Zelena.

It was not hard to believe Gold still blamed Zelena for his son’s death. Funny, how he never took responsibility for anything that happened to Neal, but he was willing to hate Zelena with an intensity Emma could almost see for Neal’s death. Yes, Zelena had a hand in it, but blame could easily be spread around, like so many other things involving this lot. She had learned forgiveness and how to let go around these folks. It made her feel better inside. She doubted Gold would be so kind, though.

“I’ll bring him inside and you can come in after,” Regina said.

Emma nodded. She checked on the kabobs she had working and then waved her father over after Regina coaxed Gold into the house. She clamped the tongs at David.

“Don’t get any ideas. I just need to get something and I don’t want these to burn since I plan to eat all of them,” Emma said.

David held up his hands in surrender. “I would never get any ideas.”

“You are so lucky Regina isn’t around for that one. I’m tempted to make fun of you,” Emma commented with a smirk.

David chuckled, but practically snatched the tongs from Emma. Emma rolled her eyes, but did not say anything. She pointed to the sauces and things he might want to use, even though she did not think it was necessary as she handled it all of that. He nodded and then turned his attention to the grill. She ducked inside to find Regina and Gold in the dining room. Regina had her arms across her stomach while Gold leaned on his cane. They both glared at each other.

“Am I interrupting a staring contest?” Emma asked.

“No, Rumple was just congratulating me on this grand farce I’ve put together,” Regina replied, glaring daggers at Gold.

Emma frowned as she stood by Regina. “What’s farcical about this? Our kid is having a birthday party. He’s got his family here.”

Gold sneered, bearing his teeth like an angry animal. “Oh, please. Regina, we know this is a farce. I knew what was going on the moment there was talk of you two going to Doctor Aye. Henry’s yours, isn’t he?”

“Your point? How does that make this a farce?” Emma inquired. It also did not explain why he seemed ready to run Zelena through with the nearest sharp object. _He’s just a miserable person_.

“That boy doesn’t belong to my boy. I know Regina’s an omega. There’s no point for her to go to Doctor Aye, but you, you were with her. You’re an alpha,” Gold replied.

“So what? Because he’s not blood related to Neal you don’t care about Henry anymore?” Emma demanded, hackles up. Regina moved just a little bit ahead of her, as if to protect her from the idea that blood made family. Emma spent her entire life searching for the connection of family and it did not matter how the connection came, which was why she was willing to accept everyone at the party right now as the family they wanted to be.

“Don’t you dare speak his name while you have his murderer under your roof!” Gold roared, his eyes blazing as he leaned forward, like he was set to pounce.

Regina shifted, eyes watching Gold like he was an armed bomb, which was not far from the truth. “Is that the issue? You have to share space with my sister? Do you even remotely realize how idiotic you sound saying that to us?”

“You’re insane if that’s your problem. I’m in a relationship with the woman who cast the damn Dark Curse and caused my parents to shove me in a magic wardrobe to grow up alone in the unknown and also tried to kill me on a couple of occasions,” Emma pointed out.

“I’m sitting across from the woman who had me murder my mother to save your pathetic life because Henry views you as his grandfather and she’s sitting across from her father’s murderer, chatting like it’s just another day,” Regina added in.

“Lily is holding a conversation with the people who stole her from her mother and tossed her into the great unknown to have her fucked up life. Her mother holding a conversation with those same people, who betrayed her as far as I know. Fuck, I’m sharing space with Lily after she fucked up my chances of a good family and betrayed my trust, amongst other things,” Emma said.

“Maleficent is willing to deal with me after I allowed myself to give into darkness, listen to you, and cast the Curse against her advice and kept her captive in her dragon form beneath the library for twenty-eight years. Belle was willing to come despite all of the horrible things I did to her. And, I’m willing to have Zelena in my life despite the fact that she tried to erase me from history. You think you have a monopoly on people who wronged you, on pain and suffering?” Regina scoffed loudly. “The simple fact that I’m willing to share space with you should show you how far all of us are willing to go to have a family.”

“And the fact that we’re willing to share our son with you should let you know how far we’re willing to go for family. You’re awfully picky for a guy who killed his own father,” Emma said, shoulders squared, just in case.

Gold sneered at her. “What I did with my father has nothing to do with this.”

“No, but this all started with you and we’re all making an attempt to heal and to show you how open we all are, we’re looking to include you in the healing process. You make it seem like because Zelena is here and possibly because Henry is my child, then you don’t want to be here. If that’s the case, it’s on you and you don’t need to be here,” Regina said.

Gold scowled. “Did you do this just to rub it in my face? To hurt me more? To let me know I don’t have any more blood relatives?”

“It would’ve been a good turn considering the torture you put me through when you thought Henry was adopted,” Regina replied. “But, no, that’s not why you’re here.”

“Then why did you invite me?” His eyes accused them of all sorts of terrible things.

“I asked them to,” Henry said as he stepped into view.

Emma tensed as soon as she was aware of his presence. She spotted him out of the corner of her eye, keeping a watch on him while keeping Gold in front of her as well. Henry stopped a couple of feet from the situation, showing some learned caution. Thank goodness.

“I asked them to invite you because I still think of you as my grandfather, even if I was wrong in thinking Mom wasn’t my mother, in so many ways. For everyone here family is either hard to come by or we learn too late who family is. I was hoping you’d want to stay my family and maybe even become family with the rest of my family,” Henry said.

Gold pulled his lips into one of his usual sneers, like Henry just suggested he eat glass and die. “You think I want to be family with the bitch who killed my son?”

Regina growled and pointed at him. “Watch what you call my sister in my house.”

“Or else what? You’re hardly a match for me and your big bad savior can hardly deliver on any sort of magical support,” Gold remarked.

“Yes, but I am here,” Maleficent commented as she came into view. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were having a private party.” She moved behind Emma, so she was backup, but also a shield for Henry. Part of Emma, a part she ignored, groused at this.

Gold scowled. He could probably beat one of them, maybe even two of them, but definitely not three of them. Still, this was disappointing. Emma had hoped Gold would accept Henry’s offer of family since Gold was very aware of what it was like to lose family. But, blood seemed to mean something Gold.

Gold sucked his teeth and regarded them as if they were lower than something he would scrape off the bottom of his shoe. He rushed off, as best he could with a cane. He was probably going to get Belle to get the hell out of Dodge.

Regina turned to Henry as soon as Gold was out of sight. “Henry, that was reckless.”

“What?” Henry asked, as if he did not know.

“Confronting the Dark One is reckless on my level and it took me a lot of years to get this reckless,” Emma replied, patting him on the shoulder.

“He has nerve, though, acting like he’s too good for us. Okay, yes, Aunt Zelena killed his son, but like you both pointed out, everyone in our family has had a problem with at least one other person and we’re all moving beyond that. Family is precious,” Henry declared.

“It absolutely is,” Belle said, stepping onto the scene with Gold by her side. “Which is why Rumple is going to apologize to you and try to embrace this amazing gift you’ve offered him.” She glared at Gold, who did not say anything.

“Don’t force anything on him, Belle,” Regina said.

Henry nodded. “Yeah, if he doesn’t want it, he doesn’t want it. Our family is voluntary.”

“Demented is what you mean to say,” Gold snapped.

“But, more than what you have. Did it ever occur to you that you’re actually the common denominator to all of this? Your Curse is the common denominator. You’re throwing stones from a glass house,” Regina said.

“You’re just looking to erase your crimes over the past few decades and maybe your family will lie to you, but we both know you’re the monster between us,” Gold had the nerve to say.

“That you built from scratch for your own purposes. Well, the purpose is done. I am free and forgiven for the most part. Can you say the same? Who, besides Belle, will ever offer you comfort and security? Who, besides Belle, will ever offer you forgiveness?” Regina said with a curl to her lip.

“Mom,” Henry said, probably wanting to stop whatever this was.

Gold tapped his cane on the floor. “You think this is forgiveness?” He made a show of looking around. “You’re nothing more than a mascot to these people for the moment and eventually they’ll crumble away from you just like everything you touch.”

“Rumple!” Belle scolded him.

“Gold, just remember, you come at her, you come at all of us,” Emma warned him. If he dared to hurt her lover, she would rain down Hell on him.

“And we won’t be kind or gentle with you,” Maleficent added in.

Gold had the nerve to vanish, without Belle. What an asshole. Calling him a douche was an insult to douches. Emma’s thoughts were taken from Gold as she realized Maleficent’s scent had changed. It was almost as if she was producing the alpha protective pheromones, brought on by the adrenaline rush of confronting Gold. That did not make any sense and Emma shook it away, even though she had to consciously stop herself from gnashing her teeth at Maleficent. _Stupid alpha. Calm down_.

“Belle, you’re still welcomed amongst us,” Regina said. This could be her being generous or it could be a contingency plan. With Regina, it could be a little of both. Emma would make an effort to make sure Belle felt welcomed regardless.

“Please, stay. Mom made my favorite cake! It’s huge and delicious and awesome,” Henry insisted with a grin.

Belle snickered. “Well, how could I pass that up?”

Henry beamed, took hold of Belle’s hand, and led her back to the party. Emma looked between Regina and Maleficent, waiting for one of them to make a move for a reason she did not want to contemplate. Regina fell to her side and swept her back outside with Maleficent right behind them. Something inside of her settled and she went back to working the grill.

“I think I did a pretty good job for a sub,” David said with a laugh. 

Emma forced out a chuckle. “I’ll bet.”

The party went on and went well. Gold’s threat did not even loom. Regina made a strawberry short cake for Henry’s birthday with a Spiderman design, which he loved. It looked professional and it amazed Emma that Regina could do this without magic. But, then again, thirty years of practice was more than enough. _What the hell made Regina take up baking and cooking as a hobby?_ It was so omega, especially during a time when Regina wanted to be seen as an alpha, as _THE_ alpha.

But, then again, considering how any professional chef was probably an alpha, it was not too far-fetched. Regina’s cooking could be seen as professional. So, maybe it was not really in opposite to her alpha facade.

Thoughts of alphas turned her attention back to Maleficent. Could she be an alpha? Emma had always had suspicions, but never thought too heavily on it. Before she got lost in that thought more than she needed to, Regina placed a huge slice of cake in her hand. Emma could not help diving into it, knowing it would be delicious. It melted in her mouth. After that, they got to watch Henry start in on his mountain of gifts. His grandparents, mother, and aunt all went out for the same reason. “This is our first real birthday with him.”

“Let’s just open one from each guest to avoid being here all night,” Regina told Henry.

Henry nodded. “Okay. Good.” He turned his attention to the gift pile. He grabbed the one that was so obvious. It was definitely from his grandparents.

“He’s not licensed for a sword,” Emma pointed out as Henry gripped his broad sword at the hilt. His face went red a few seconds later, straining to hold the weapon up.

“And why would you get him one so large?” Regina asked.

“He’ll grow into it and we’ll practice, so he can get a license when he’s old enough,” David replied with a proud smile.

“He’s got two years to work on it,” Emma said.

“Maybe you’ll join us.” David smiled. “You could use a license, too.”

Emma shrugged. It would be a good bonding activity for all of them. “And learn something other than my sweet move of throwing the sword?” There were chuckles at that, even from Maleficent, and Henry moved onto his next present.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina was tempted to use magic for the party cleanup, but needed something to occupy her time while Emma and Henry screamed at each other over his new video game system. They were as rambunctious as always with Zelena adding color commentary to the noise, delighting in Henry’s enjoyment of her gift. If they dared to wake Robbie, there would be Hell to pay, even if it was Henry’s birthday.

Regina was happy everything went off without a hitch, even with Rumple proving to be the ass he always was. But, Belle stayed behind, so that might be enough to hold off whatever plot he might have waiting. She knew he would nibble at them until he could snap, though. He might even decide to play nice for appearance sakes. Regina needed to figure out what she had to snap back with, beyond the promise of him having to take on her, Emma, Maleficent, and undoubtedly Zelena.

“You know, you could simply wave all this away,” Zelena said as she watched Regina dump several items into the garbage before tying up the bag.

“Yes, and then I’d have nothing to do,” Regina replied.

“We could talk.”

“We could do that now and you could also help.”

Zelena sneered and wiggled her fingers. The garbage disappeared. “There. I helped.”

Regina glared at her irksome sister. “That bag better before in the trash can and not someone’s living room.”

“Even if it’s Rumple’s?” Zelena’s eyes sparkled.

Regina frowned. “You didn’t.” It was possible Zelena did. In fact, seemed highly likely the more she thought about it.

Zelena snickered. “No, but I think he needs it. And before you ask, Maleficent told me what happened. She wanted to make sure I was on board when we needed to band together and destroy the forces of Darkness.”

“Is that your dramatic rendition of what happened?”

Zelena smiled and made a flashy movement with her hands. “Of course. How could Maleficent be more poetic than I? My point, when shit hits the fan, we both know I’ll be there with you. One, because I don’t like Rumple anyway, and, two, you’re my little sister.”

“And you need help with Robbie.”

Zelena sucked her teeth. “I can’t help it that you’re a more practiced omega than I am.”

Regina rolled her eyes. “Yes, that’s why I can get her to stop crying with her teeth coming in. The fact that it hasn’t occurred to you to make a poultice for her gums is extraordinary.”

Zelena gasped, eyes wide, and properly scandalized. “I won’t use magic on my daughter!”

Regina smirked. “Oh, so you’re learning. You do realize all magic doesn’t have to be dark magic, right?”

Zelena arched an eyebrow. “You know a poultice for her?”

“I think I might. I have some books. Come.”

“And the party?”

Regina waved her hand and everything was clean. She had something to keep busy with while Emma and Henry did their thing. She and Zelena spent time in her office, researching something safe to use on Robbie’s gums when the ora-jel proved to be even too weak for her pain. There were a few things for them to try.

Eventually, Zelena and Robbie left for their own home. Regina went to join her family on the couch. By then, Emma and Henry were in their pajamas. Regina changed her own clothes by magic as she settled in next to Emma.

“Hey, are those my joggers?” Emma plucked at the grey pants Regina had on.

“Yes, I wanted to see why you enjoy them so much,” Regina replied and she made a show of wiggling in her seat. “They are worn and comfortable.” She was not lying. Emma’s wardrobe was about to be her house clothes. It was Emma’s fault. They smelled so much like her that it made Regina’s insides melt.

Henry let out a loud groan. “Can you two not be gross on my birthday, please?”

“Okay, but we’re just going to be extra gross on my birthday to make up for it.” Emma shrugged. Her birthday was in ten days.

Regina chuckled, even though she had such plans. “Let’s not bring up your birthday. It’s Henry’s day and I have a special present for him.”

“Oh, a present given when everyone’s gone. What? Is it a puppy?” Henry asked.

“When I think you’ll actually be taking care of the puppy and not me and Emma, we can revisit that idea,” Regina replied.

“I can so take care of a puppy, except when it’s raining. Then, that’s what the backyard is for,” Henry said.

“Not my backyard with my garden and the children’s play area. But, here.” Regina flipped her hand and a manilla envelope appeared in her hand. She presented it to Henry with both hands.

Henry’s brow furrowed as he accepted the envelope. He paused the game and opened the envelope with hurried care.. Regina grabbed Emma’s hand while Henry opened. She leaned in close to Emma’s ear.

“It’s sort of an early gift for you as well.” She placed a gentle kiss behind Emma’s ear.

Emma turned to her. “What did you do?”

Regina smiled as Henry yanked out the piece of paper. His face scrunched up, at first not knowing what he was looking at. The way his eyes lit up as realization dawned on him was enough to fill Regina’s heart.

“It has Emma’s name on it!” Henry shoved the paper in Emma’s face.

“What is this?” Emma backed up a little and eased the paper from his grip. She gasped. “Oh, my god.”

“You’re on my birth certificate now! Right there!” Henry had to adjust his body to point to the word “sire” on the certificate for Emma to see her full name appeared on it.

Tears slid down Emma’s cheeks and her mouth moved, but nothing came out for a while. “I… You…” She grabbed Henry into a tight hug. “I love you, kid. I love you so much.”

“I love you, too, Ma. This is the best birthday ever because we’re all together,” Henry said. He then locked eyes with Regina. “Come on, Mom. Get in here. You make this whole thing possible.”

Regina did not argue and worked her way into the embrace. She kissed Henry’s cheek and went to do the same to Emma, but Emma turned, as if she knew what was coming. The kiss was simple peck, but it felt like so much more.

“It’s like officially being a family,” Emma said.

“It’s so cool!” Henry pulled back to stare at his updated birth certificate. “I still can’t believe I was born in Boston.”

“I still can’t believe you thought you weren’t Regina’s biological son considering how much you’re like her,” Emma remarked and she knocked her head against Henry’s temple. “Yeah, just as hard-headed as I thought.”

Henry rolled his eyes. “There is this thing called nurture, you know?” He took back his birth certificate, looking at it like it was the most precious thing ever. Emma wrapped her arms around Regina and grinned like a goofball. Regina’s heart fluttered from their happiness.

“You still have to sign it,” Regina said.

“Oh, yeah. I’ll do that when he’s not holding it like it’s a map leading to the greatest treasure in all the land,” Emma replied.

Henry never did let go of the birth certificate. Emma would probably have to sign it in the morning. Henry took it to bed with him. Regina chuckled over it.

“I knew he’d like it, but not enough to go to bed with it. I wonder if he tucked it in,” Regina said.

“Like I said, I think it’s because it makes our family official. I mean, we know we’re a family, but it’s like going from a foster kid in a good family that treats you like one of them to being adopted into that family. Not that I’d know how that feels, but I imagine it’s like that.”

Regina snuggled into Emma. “Just the fact that we all love each other was enough for me, but I’m glad this went over so well with both of you.”

Emma gave Regina a squeeze around her waist. “I wish I was there, ya know? When he was born. I wish I was there for you and for him.”

“You didn’t know, so don’t regret.”

“It’s not really a regret, just a wish. I wish for a lot of things that might seem like regrets, but I don’t feel them that way. Like, I wish I met you under different circumstances.”

Regina’s brow furrowed. “Why? The way we met worked out so well in your favor.”

Emma soothed the wrinkle in Regina’s forehead with a light caress of her thumb. “Oh, I know. But, I didn’t like seeing you sad and I kinda don’t like the reason you slept with me was because you were sad.”

Regina rolled her eyes. “I slept with you because you were oddly charming. It had nothing to do with my despair. So, never think that.”

“Well, I wish the world had taken better care of you. I know I couldn’t be around to protect you or shield you from life, but I wish things were different for you.”

“Even if it meant we’d never make it to this moment?” Regina asked. Part of her believed if she could save Emma from her life, she would, but another part of her always screamed, “But, Henry!” She wanted to protect both of them and now she could.

Emma shrugged. “Well, I’d just want things to be okay for you. Maybe we’d meet anyway.”

“Darling, I think you forget how much older I am than you.”

“So? Maybe I like older woman. I’m sure I’m just as cool in a world raised by my parents as I am now.” Emma gave her an exaggerated cocky grin.

 _Would that be the case?_ Regina doubted it. “I’m not sure it’s funny you think you’re cool or you think you would be cool being raised by Charming and Snow.”

“Nah, I’d be so cool. And they’d be all right with you being my mate because I’d be _that_ cool.”

Regina laughed. “Now, I love that you think I would want to be your mate if you were raised by Charming and Snow.”

“You would because I’d still be made of awesome. So, if you want to be my mate here, you’d want to be my mate there. And, you do want to be my mate, right?”

“You know I do. But, this scenario you’re painting doesn’t do it for me.”

Emma scoffed. “Oh, please, I’d have been a grand adventure for you, like when you went out to meet Maleficent.”

Regina waved her off. “That was foolishness. I was lucky it turned out well. You haven’t gotten a chance to really see Maleficent’s power. That could’ve gone very wrong.”

“So, she’s more powerful than you?”

“She was at the time. The magic it takes to turn yourself into a real dragon, not some fancy illusion, is no small feat. You’ll notice Rumple never attempts such a thing. I have no desire to do such a thing.”

“But, you could?”

“Why, do you want me to?”

Emma grimaced. “No, thank you. Did you hang out with Maleficent a lot? I mean, were you like besties? Because if you were, that takes away cool points and makes me cooler.”

Regina snorted. “What makes you think you’re cool? My best friend can turn into a dragon. What can your best friend do?”

Emma pulled her close and nuzzled her neck. “Give birth to the best son ever.”

Regina sucked her teeth. “You think you’re so suave.”

“Oh, I am. That was good, wasn’t it? See, you’re my best friend. Maleficent can’t beat that, right?”

Regina arched an eyebrow. “Are you jealous of Maleficent, Emma?”

Emma scoffed and pulled back for a second, as if needing Regina to see how wrong she was. “What? No! Why should I be jealous of her? I got the girl.” She buried her nose in Regina’s neck and placed a few light kisses there. “Maleficent can’t have you.”

Regina smirked, wanting to mess with Emma a little. “How do you know she hasn’t?”

Emma growled, probably did not even realize it. “Did she?”

“What does it matter? You have me now, right?” Regina asked. She probably should not have started this, especially with Emma so sensitive about her sexual status. She did not want to pull any “alpha” behavior out of Emma until Emma was comfortable with who she was.

“Damn right.” Emma snuggled into her neck. “Maleficent should’ve mated and marked you when she had the chance. Now, you’re all mine. You had my pup and everything. You didn’t have a pup for her.”

“I couldn’t have a pup for her. I was with the King at the time. That wouldn’t have been smart of me.”

Emma pulled back. “Would you have had a pup with her if you could?”

Regina cupped Emma’s face with both hands.  “You listen to me, you’re it for me, okay? You don’t have to think about what I might have done with Maleficent if I had a chance. She’s my friend, a close friend, but you are the female alpha I will one day mark, mate, and marry. Do you hear me?”

“You sure?”

Regina pulled Emma into a kiss. “I’m more than sure. One day, I promise I will mark, mate, and marry you. In that order possibly.”

“What if I propose to you first?” Emma grinned.

“Then married, marked, and mated. It doesn’t matter to me, beloved. You’re the only alpha for me.” Regina meant that with all of her heart.

“So… Maleficent’s an alpha? How did she have Lily then?”

Regina shook her head. “You know I don’t like to discuss anyone’s sexual status, even with you. That’s all Maleficent’s business. If you’re so curious, befriend her and ask her yourself.”

“I’m not that curious. I mean, maybe I am because then Lily doesn’t make sense, but whatever.” Emma shrugged and glanced it away.

“You don’t have to worry about Lily or Maleficent or anyone. Now, you just got added to your son’s birth certificate on your son’s thirteenth birthday. Enjoy it.”

“Lemme tell you, that was awesome. Thank you so much.” Emma kissed the top of her head.

“So, what do you want for your birthday?”

Emma grinned and yanked Regina down to the sofa. “Can I have you? I’m good with that. Oh, and can you pop out of a cake?”

Regina made a dramatic sigh. “Why did I even ask?” It was a good thing she had her own ideas.

“Because you love me!” Emma kissed her before she could say anything, not that she had anything important to say. Plans were made and set. Emma squandered her chance for input, which did not surprise Regina.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Zelena needs Regina’s attention, so they have a sister’s day out.


	4. Fantasy Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters; Disney/ABC does. I also don’t own Sesame Street or Elmo, which come up in this chapter on the television. And I don't own the song, Birthday Sex, as that comes up in the chapter as well.
> 
> Public Service Announcement: for those of you who don’t want to see G!P Regina, stop reading once Regina and Emma have dinner together. 

4: Fantasy Birthday

“I can’t believe you’re pulling this nonsense three days before Emma’s birthday,” Regina said, glaring at her sister as they exited her car. She and Zelena were alone. There were no witnesses. She could, in theory, be rid of the redheaded pest and no one would ever know! She could even raise Robbie to be a civilized being, but no. Zelena was her older sister. Her immature, annoying older sister, but her older sister nonetheless. How had she longed for one as a child. It was not often she had wishes answered, so she would not squander Zelena, even if she did seem like a curse more often than not.

“Oh, please. It’s not like I asked you to do this on her birthday and I think we both know you’ve triple-checked everything for her birthday with everything planned to the letter,” Zelena replied as she slammed the door to the car.

Regina glared at her even harder. “We talked about that.”

Zelena scoffed and waved the whole thing off. “I’ll fix it if I break it. Now, let’s enjoy our sisterly afternoon. I’m sure Emma isn’t complaining this much while she watches Robbie.”

“No, as she obviously got the better end of the deal.” Despite her words, Regina looped her arm with Zelena and they proceeded to stroll through the chic shops of the fashion district. While Zelena was beyond irksome, Regina suspected Zelena had the same wishes for a sister when she was younger. Zelena just did not know how to act around people for whatever reason.

“You can blame yourself for this. Seeing you and Emma being disgustingly in love makes me want to try my hand at it. When you were with Robin, I thought it was a waste of time, but you seem genuinely happy with Emma.”

“I am genuinely happy with Emma. So much so I have to wonder why pixie dust thought I should mate with Robin.” It did not sting to speak of him or think of him, even if he died on such a useless venture in retrospect. At least she managed to get closer to Zelena while they journeyed through Hell.

“The dust didn’t really say you should mate with him, from what he told me, which would be from what you told him.”

Regina frowned at the memory. She suspected Robin had not considered their relationship serious until he knew he was her soul mate. She was not sure if she ever took the relationship serious, though, because she never felt like he was. She just wanted someone and if magic said they were supposed to connect, she was willing to try.

“Did he know of your status?” Zelena asked.

Regina arched an eyebrow. “I don’t think that matters. We’re not having some sex talk out in the open where any idiot could hear.”

“You don’t want to have a sex talk, even as we’re about to walk into a lingerie store?” Zelena gave her a wicked grin.

“I thought we were shopping for a new wardrobe. What do you need lingerie for? You’re not showing it to anyone,” Regina replied.

“You say that now…” Zelena wiggled her eyebrows.

Regina rolled her eyes, not tempted by the bait. She wished her sister would date, if only to mingle and make friends. She knew from her own life that friends were sort of necessary for anyone, true friends. She had Emma, Maleficent, and even Tinker Bell and Kathryn. Friends reduced stress.

“Come on. This is my favorite boutique and Evelyn is a genius when it comes to giving someone a unique style that fits them. She styled me while I was queen, both the meek and Evil version,” Regina said. She swore by Evelyn even to this day.

Zelena made a face, but Regina took her to the boutique anyway. As soon as they stepped inside, there was a young woman there to greet them with a smile. She was new, as Regina was not familiar with her and she had been to Evelyn’s recently.

“Your Majesty,” the young woman said.

Regina waved the young woman off. “Regina is fine.”

“I’ve got it from here, Stacy,” one of the usual girls said, as she stepped into view from behind a rack. “Regina, the usual green tea?”

“Thank you, Emily.”

Emily turned her attention to Zelena. “Is there anything I could get for you? We have an assortment of teas, coffee, cocoa, soft drinks, and even milkshakes if you give me a moment. For food, there are cakes, pies, and other pastries.”

Zelena blinked and stepped back. She was not accustomed to such kindness on a first meet. Sometimes, she even still got the cold shoulder at _Granny’s_ , and those were friends of her family.  Emily was a good maiden, though, and nothing Regina had seen stopped Emily from doing her duty.

“We might be here a while. I think my sister would delight in one of your milkshakes,” Regina said. Zelena was taken with fast food as much as anyone else would be who first encountered it.

Emily smiled and nodded. “Most excellent. I’ll fetch Evelyn and Pamela will bring your tea. Please, feel free to sit.” She motioned to cushioned chairs by a wall and was gone before the sisters had a chance to move.

“Come.” Regina pulled Zelena to sit down.

Zelena sucked her teeth, but took a seat. She crossed her legs at the ankle and Regina thought it was funny to see Zelena go through the motions of being a lady. It was there her commoner upbringing shone through. She did not have the posture their mother would have demanded, would have beaten into her. While Zelena might never be happy with it, Regina was glad Zelena would never meet their mother. She had no doubt Cora would have broken Zelena, much more than Zelena’s own adoptive father had and with greater, scarier precision.

“She’s not going to try to dress me like some sweet little omega, is she?” Zelena sneered.

“Not unless you plan on telling her you are one. Let Evelyn work when she comes. She’s an artist. You’ll enjoy it,” Regina replied. There was not a time when being dressed by Evelyn did not improve Regina’s mood, even when she was the Evil Queen.

Zelena sucked her teeth. “As long as she doesn’t try to dress me like some doll. I have little desire to be put in skirts as if calling forth alphas to turn them up.”

Regina rolled her eyes, but did not have to say anything. The new girl, Stacy, came over with their beverages with Pamela watching from a few feet away. Stacey was in training, it would seem. A smile for a thanks sent Stacy on her way. Of course, the smile only came from Regina, as Zelena did not know how to be grateful just yet. It was amusing to see how snobbish her peasant sister could be.

“This milkshake better be ambrosia for the size of it,” Zelena complained as she took the goblet. It was roughly the size of a mug.

“I think you mean nectar.”

“I think this is a waste of time.”

“I’m waiting for you to find a way to complain about sunshine,” Regina replied.

Zelena let loose a loud scoff. “As if either of us care about sunshine.”

Regina could not call her a liar there. She sipped her green tea, ignoring the steam rising from the liquid, and watched Zelena from the corner of her eye. She knew her sister enjoyed the milkshake from the lack of complaints. Evelyn strolled out talking to Emily and holding some cloth. Emily nodded and took the cloth while Evelyn stepped over to the sisters.

“Always a pleasure, Your Majesty.” Evelyn bowed as much as her back would allow. In the Old World, she used to mumble about her back all the time. Potions and poultices did not seem to do anything for her, but in this world, a massage once a month seemed to be the perfect cure. Regina once joked it was the handsome twenty-year-old giving the massage that probably helped, but Evelyn had not replied.

Regina sighed. “Evelyn, one day, you will accept my offer to call me Regina, as your shop girls have.”

“Ricky doesn’t call you Regina,” Evelyn pointed out.

“Stop trying to drag me into things,” Ricky’s disembodied voice came from the back of the shop. “What I call Miss Thang is between me and her.”

Evelyn rolled her eyes. “What you did to turn my own son against me, I’ll never know. You didn’t dare let him dress you once, did you?”

Regina gasped, totally affronted… or at least she hoped her face showed that. “I would never.” This was a lie, but it was a long time ago and Evelyn did not need to know about it.

“I’m sure.” Evelyn pursed her lips. Her tone could not hold more disbelief if she tried. She gave Regina a once over with sharp grey eyes and then turned her attention to Zelena. “Now, I’m not too sure how titles work here, but I’m certain in our homeland, you’d be Her Excellency.”

Zelena’s brow furrowed. “Excuse me?”

“Evelyn has decided you’re a duchess. I suppose that makes some sense since I was queen in my own right. Evelyn, Zelena is here for a full wardrobe. She’s decided she should get out and mingle amongst the people. Perhaps, even make a friend. We need her to look something like a human.”

“Oh, hardy, har, har,” Zelena said with her top lip curled.

Evelyn moved, standing in front of Zelena. There was almost three feet of space between them and Evelyn would never touch someone she considered a royal without permission, but Zelena squirmed under her gaze. It was not surprising. Evelyn was so intent in her work, she always seemed to be peeling back the layers and discovering things people did not even know about themselves. It did not help matters that her eyes seemed silver, so there was an unnatural feel to her studying anyone.

“Is the green a must?” Evelyn asked, as Zelena was wearing her favorite color, which was green. The irony would never be lost on them.

“I am a fan,” Zelena replied in a gruff tone. She crossed her arms over her chest.

“I can work with that, but there are so many colors and combinations. Several would compliment you. How about I put together a couple of outfits for you from my stock and then you decide if you like it? From there, we can work on designing you other things,” Evelyn said.

Zelena huffed, as if this was a burden to her. “I’m not a doll.”

Evelyn’s expression did not change, despite Zelena’s rudeness. “I didn’t think you were. The dressings have nothing to do with you being a doll, but have everything to do with your clothing announcing who you are without you saying a word.” She put her chin in the air.

“Oh, darling, everyone already knows I am wicked.” This was said with a smirk.

Regina could not help the groan that escaped her. “Is it too late to say I don’t know her?”

Evelyn snickered and walked off. Regina took her sister by the elbow to make her follow Evelyn to a somewhat open area of the shop. Evelyn called for Emily and Ricardo while Regina took a seat away from the circular platform Evelyn had Zelena stand on. Emily and Ricardo popped up like Thing One and Thing Two, which was probably how Evelyn looked at them.

“Oh, Mami’s dressing the other Miss Thang,” Ricardo said. His golden skin seemed to glow more in this world than it did in the Enchanted Forest, like it enjoyed this life as much as Ricardo did.

“There is only one Miss Thang,” Regina promised Ricardo and he flashed her the most charming smile she had ever seen on someone who was not Emma. His grey eyes helped, much more affable than his mother’s, like flowing mercury and it did not seem like he could see down to the bone in the way his mother did.

“Oh, I have the perfect cobalt shirt and gold belt.” Emily was off before Evelyn or Zelena could say anything.

“Ricardo, control your wife. She needs to understand, once again, this is my shop,” Evelyn said.

Ricardo scoffed. “Control who? If there ever was a dominating alpha, I married her. Besides, you welcomed her as a daughter. You control her. I have to go home with that.” He gave his mother a sassy smile and then gave Regina a wink.

Regina chuckled. Once upon a time, he was her partner in crime, back when Evelyn dressed her in the Enchanted Forest. He was only two years younger than she was, his father was also from her father’s kingdom, and always with his mother when she was in the palace. He came to spend time with her whenever his mother was in the palace and not dressing her. He was there to rage for her when she could not, seeing her in pain and given to an old alpha she did not care for. Eventually, Leopold must have heard, as Ricardo was banned from the palace and Evelyn was fired. Regina hired her back after taking care of Leopold.

Zelena visibly stiffened. She was not used to the casual mentioning of people’s sexual status, as Ricardo had just done with Emily. Regina could only hope Zelena did not make a fuss over it, especially since she seemed overly sensitive today for some reason.

“Ricardo, not everyone is openly omega like you,” Regina teased him.

Ricardo chuckled. “I’m sure you mean everyone’s not open like me.” He turned to Zelena. “Forgive me. My mama always says I talk too much.”

Evelyn rolled her eyes. “One of your many flaws, my son, but I still love you.”

“Aw.” Ricardo blew a kiss to his mother, but Emily returned and pretended to snatch it out of the air. “Your kisses are only for me, even if they go to your mama.” With that said, she leaned over to kiss Evelyn’s cheek. “I think you will agree with this shirt every much.”

Emily held up the shirt and Evelyn nodded. Zelena sneered immediately. “If you think you can dress me like this little omega Ricardo, you’re wrong.” Ricardo just happened to be wearing a dark blue shirt.

“Zelena,” Regina snapped. She knew it had to kill Zelena inside to see Ricardo being so open with who he was. It did not help that Zelena was insecure with her sexual status while Ricardo embraced his with open arms.

“What? I am not some prissy little omega,” Zelena said.

“No one said you were. Do not try to make Ricardo feel bad for accepting who he is,” Regina replied.

“Not that anyone wouldn’t be able to guess my status upon first glance,” Ricardo said with a grin, throwing his hands up a little and having several bracelets on his wrists ring out. He was very flamboyant, sometimes as it was just a part of him and others times just on purpose. He could be seen as a very stereotypical male omega, but he was who he was and he was a genuine person.

“Okay, can we move on from your display and get to work?” Evelyn said with a long-suffering huff.

Regina tuned them out as they finally got to work. She continued sipping her green tea and had a few texts from Maleficent, asking questions to make sense of something Lily was telling her. Sometimes, she thought Lily enjoyed confusing Maleficent with jargon from this world. And then Emma texted her a photo of her and Robbie and Regina felt like she melted into her chair.

“Aw…” Regina accidentally said aloud.

“What has you cooing?” Ricardo asked, suddenly behind her and staring at her phone like it was his business. And he cooed. “Oh, look at Emma with that cute, little niña. Makes my biological clock tick like mad.”

Regina groaned and rolled her eyes. “Do you have to be an open book about everything?”

“This is your niece, yes? Zelena, your baby is adorable. Maybe we could dress her as well?” Ricardo grinned.

“When she gets older, there will definitely be aunt and niece outings,” Regina replied. She would make a day of it, like she used to do with Henry.

“I can’t wait to meet her. Hopefully, we will have our own little one by then,” Ricardo said.

“Do you want to have a fight right here? Is that what you’re angling for?” Emily inquired, but she had a small smile on her face.

Ricardo chuckled. “Well, it’s not like we can have one to match her Henry, so we have to do something soon.” Emily scoffed and went back to work, discussing several color choices and styles with Evelyn, who did not respond much, beyond sending her son and daughter-in-law off for other articles of clothing.

Zelena frowned the whole time and made huffy comments about “looking like an omega” for several outfits. She often looked to Regina for confirmation, but Regina knew better than to get in between Evelyn and her choice in clothing. Besides, everything looked good.

Regina felt a little sorry for Zelena. It was clear she was growing increasingly uncomfortable with her status and maybe she wanted Regina to join her in commiserating. In the past, Regina probably would have joined right in. Hell, not too long ago, Regina could see herself at least validating her sister’s fear. Now, she had nothing to say. She did not even agree with Zelena in her thoughts.

Regina was growing increasingly more comfortable with being an omega. She was growing more comfortable with who she was, liking herself more. She wanted Zelena to feel that, too, which was why she agreed to this sisterly outing. Originally, Maleficent was supposed to come with them, but Regina asked her to hold off. Maleficent was not happy about it, but filled her time being perplexed by her daughter.

“Zelena, it looks beautiful,” Regina said. This was the fifth outfit, a gorgeous white sundress. They had not even added accessories yet and Zelena looked radiant.

“I don’t wear white,” Zelena growled. Regina waited for some comment about “omegas” to come, as she knew it would. “This is for virginal omegas. I told you I didn’t want to be dressed like some omega waiting to get bent over.”

“What do you have against omegas? Every complaint you’ve had has been tied to that sexual status,” Ricardo scowled.

“I’m already an unmarried woman with a daughter. I don’t want people making any more assumptions about me than I already know they are,” Zelena replied.

“Yes, because that’s the first thing they think of instead of the Second Curse and being turned into Flying Monkeys,” Ricardo said, which shut Zelena up for a longer moment than Regina was used to. She would have to remember to congratulate him later. For now, she wanted to find out what Emma was doing with Robbie.

-8-8-8-8-

“Okay, Rob, you’ve been fed and bathed and you smell like amazing. I think we’ve covered everything. Time for some education TV,” Emma told the toddler.

“Elmo!” Robbie threw up her arms, almost punching Emma in the face.

Emma chuckled and wasted no time putting on _Elmo’s World_ for Robbie. She had seen the show several times with Robbie and Little Guy, but it still tickled her to watch Robbie dance when the theme song started. Between this and _the Mickey Mouse Club_ , Emma wondered what sort of magic people put into children’s shows. What show had Henry liked as a child? In her false memories, she knew _Sesame Street_ was one, but how much detail had Regina been able to include in those memories?

It was all good with Robbie dancing and singing, for the most part, as much as a toddler who could barely stand could. Emma even took a short video of it and sent it to Regina, even though Regina had seen this behavior more times than they could count. It was all fun and games until Robbie lost her balance, fell, and smashed her face into the armchair cushion. She cried bloody murder almost immediately. Emma shot up to comfort her.

“Oh, you’re okay, green bean,” Emma cooed as she rocked the baby in her arms. Robbie did not seem to agree, crying harder, which Emma knew was because she was safe and secure enough to milk this for all it was worth, as Emma’s brother did most of the time.

Robbie’s tears soaked through Emma’s shirt, but eventually she calmed down and went back to seeing what Elmo was up to. Emma tried to put her down, but she clung to Emma as if she had taken lessons from a koala bear. Emma held her close, but made sure she got a good look at the television.

Every now and then, her phone chimed with a text from Regina or Henry. She did not bother to move to answer them, not wanting to disrupt Robbie’s quiet time for a moment. Every few seconds, she glanced down, thinking Robbie might be asleep, even though she already took her nap. She was not asleep at any point, eyes wide open, taking in all of Elmo as she sucked her thumb.

Eventually, Robbie was fine enough to get down. She crawled to be closer to the television, but got distracted by the slew of toys littering the floor. She had stuffed animals, instruments, a pretend laptop, a pretend phone, blocks, and a huge basket of other items. What beat all of that? The actual TV remote.

“Hey, how’d you get that?” Emma was off the couch to take back the remote before Robbie accidentally changed the channel, which would be something akin to the end of the world for Robbie.

Robbie let out a whine, but was distracted when Emma turned on a dancing Elmo doll. Robbie’s little hip came out as she tried to mimic the Elmo doll and watch Elmo on screen. It was all fine until Robbie started crying for no reason.

“What is it?” Emma’s heart rate spiked. She did not want to screw this up. “You can’t be hungry. We just ate. Did you make in your diaper?” She picked Robbie up to check, but she was still all clean. Robbie wailed. “Come on, kid. We’ve been having a good day and your auntie is gonna be back any minute. I don’t want her to think I can’t handle you!”

Robbie let loose a wail, like she wanted to get Emma in trouble. Emma searched the living room. What would Regina do? She would probably animate one of the dolls to make it dance. Emma had not had nearly enough practice with magic to attempt that. What else usually got Robbie to stop her sudden tears?

“Oh, you want your teething ring?” Emma moved back over to the couch and scanned the coffee table. “Hey, you want the one that looks like piano keys?” She tried to hand that one to Robbie, who pushed it away like it was poisonous. “What about the one that looks like an octopus?” Emma thought this one was gross because it was firm, yet squishy. It felt weird and maybe Robbie agreed because she took it and threw it with all of her little toddler might. “Then, dude, what? We both know you hate the one that looks like prime ribs.”

Robbie screamed because she did hate that one now. Emma was about to give up, but then she remembered the little baggie of yogurt melts sitting on the counter. Both Robbie and Little Guy went crazy for those things. She went and grabbed the bag, pouring a few in her hand, and held them up for Robbie to see. The cries quieted down as Robbie studied what was in her hand and then grabbed one like her life depended on it. Shoving the yogurt melt in her mouth, Robbie was suddenly happy again and good with being put down. Emma retreated to the couch with the yogurt melts in hand. Robbie crawled to her every few seconds for another one.

Emma noticed Regina’s car pull into the driveway from the window and smiled to herself. She had taken care of Robbie all morning and afternoon without incident. Hell, she even enjoyed herself. How many alphas would ever say they enjoyed looking after someone else’s pup? _What, you think this will prove something? She already had your pup, idiot, so you know she would raise a family with you if she could_. Still, Emma felt accomplished and the stupid voice in her head could not change that.

“Look, you look nice in white, just accept that,” Regina said as she and Zelena came through the door, bags in hand.

“You just don’t want to admit your dressmaker was mocking me,” Zelena replied.

“No, you just don’t want to admit she captured your essence with five outfits better than you have with two dozen. And, she did it while you whined the whole time and insulted her only child with every other word out your mouth,” Regina said.

“So… productive day for you two?” Emma asked with a grin.

“If you mean Zelena trying to get me banned from the only boutique who still treats me like a queen and a friend, yes,” Regina answered.

“They were mocking me,” Zelena insisted.

“They were not. You were the one who kept bringing up omegas, in front of Ricardo, who is very conscious of the fact that he’s a walking stereotype, but can’t help it because that’s just his flamboyant personality,” Regina said.

“Ricardo? Is he the one who makes prom dresses for girls who can’t afford them?” Emma asked.

“That is one of the many charities he does, yes. Zelena thought it was a good idea to keep insulting his sexual status after he mentioned he was an omega,” Regina answered.

Emma shrugged. “Did he really need to mention it? He winks glitter.”

Regina rolled her eyes. “Please, don’t say that too loudly. A fairy once cursed him with that exact problem.”

“A fairy cursed him to wink glitter?”

“Fairies have trouble with sarcasm and the wink was misinterpreted. Anyway, how was Robbie?” Regina asked as she moved to put her bags down.

“She was great. We had a good time,” Emma replied as Zelena went to pick up Robbie. She kissed Robbie’s cheek, earning a laughing grin.

“Really?” Regina sounded skeptical and the arched eyebrow did not help.

Emma frowned. “Yeah, why wouldn’t we?” _I’m not some douche alpha who doesn’t care about pups, only spreading my seed_.

Regina shook her head. “I was worried because it’s your first time with her alone. I’m glad it went well.” She went in and gave Emma a soft peck on the lips, draining Emma of her righteous indignation before it even had a chance to live.

“Yeah, we had a moment where I thought she was gonna knife me, but then the yogurt melts saved the day,” Emma admitted.

“Yes, she’ll keep having moments until those teeth come in,” Regina replied.

“So, show me what you two got. I mean, I don’t think I’ve ever met someone with a dressmaker before. I’ve met a few guys with tailors, but nothing more than that.” Emma shook her head. They were too rich for her blood sometimes.

“Don’t worry. One day, you too, will grace Evelyn’s shop with your presence and get a whole new wardrobe,” Regina replied, giving her thigh a pat.

Emma was not surprised by this, but also was not sure how she felt about it. Again, it was too decadent for her to consider. But, she had no doubt, one day Regina would take her on such a trip. She hoped it would be when she was more comfortable with the idea.

“Robbie will go, too, one day,” Regina said, turning her attention to her niece. She smiled at the toddler, who grinned back. Emma smiled, too. Maybe both of their days went well.

-8-8-8-8-

“I’m sorry Zelena sprung the babysitting thing on you so close to your birthday,” Regina said as they were preparing for bed. Well, Emma was ready, but Regina still needed to lotion herself. Emma did not make it a point to lotion herself unless Regina said something and it was mostly because she liked the attention and the annoyance in Regina’s voice.

“Regina, I didn’t mind and it’s not like she asked on my birthday. It was okay… unless it messed up your plans for my birthday.” Emma narrowed her gaze on Regina, who was at the foot of the bed. Emma was already curled up on her side of the bed.

“No, my plans for you will go off without a hitch or I promise things will burn,” Regina replied in a tone that made Emma completely believe her.

Emma chuckled. “Nice to see how far you’ll go for me.”

“I promise you, I will give you a wonderful birthday, just like we did for our son.”

Emma nodded, feeling light on the inside. Getting up, she rushed over to Regina and grabbed her up. Regina made a squeak sort of noise as Emma pulled her close.

“Emma!” Regina reprimanded her in the voice that made her twitch in her shorts. “I’m not done with my arms yet.”

“You’re fine! Come here, so I can kiss you senseless for making me feel so damned good.” Emma did not waste any time trying to make good on that.

Emma pulled Regina into her lap while making sure to keep the kiss going. Regina reached between them, but Emma caught her hand. She pulled away, so she and Regina could stare into each other’s eyes. She was certain if anyone saw they would accuse the couple of being gross.

“You don’t want to?” Regina asked.

“I just want to spend time kissing you and holding you close if that’s okay?”

“That will always be more than okay.”

Emma smiled and then went in for another kiss. It was leisurely and perfect. There were so many times she simply wanted to enjoy sharing space with Regina. She weaved her hands through Regina’s hair while Regina caressed her ribs and abdomen.

“You know, for my birthday, we could do this and watch movies all day and I’d be happy with it,” Emma said.

Regina smiled. “Noted, but you’ve apparently kissed yourself senseless. I already have a plan.”

Emma snickered. “Oh, right. You do. Well, if you could add couch make outs and movies to your plan, I’d appreciate it.”

“As I said, it’s noted.”

Emma decided to let it go. Regina already had everything planned and she appreciated that more than Regina would ever know. Removing her hand from Regina’s hair, she caressed Regina’s neck, up and down until her hand settled where she would eventually place her mark. She stroked the area with her thumb.

“One day,” she whispered the promise.

“Do you want it to be your birthday?” Regina asked.

“No, that’s too soon. I mean, I know we have a kid and we plan to be together for a long time, but I want us to be really sure when we mark each other.”

Regina nodded. “I’d let you, you know?” Her voice was beyond quiet, like she was scared to admit that, like speaking it any louder would tear the world asunder.

“I know and there will never be words for me to express how much that means to me.” That was the stone cold truth.

Regina smiled a little. “Maybe another birthday then.”

“Maybe.” Emma went in for another kiss, still contented with a simple make out session. She had missed out on these as a teenager, doing her best to repress any sexual desire. She doubted Regina got a chance to do much of this either, not that she would ever ask. She really did not want to know. The past did not matter. Now did.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma had spent her day getting “dolled” up, but was not too sure if she felt comfortable with it. She looked at herself in the mirror. She did not look like herself, even though she had been made up and dressed to the nines before. Regina had not seen her like that, though, and she felt like a fraud for some reason. It was not the first time she had ever put on a dress, got her hair done, or looked her best for a date. Why did it seem so weird now?

“Is it love? Is it that Regina knows I’m an alpha? Is it me acknowledging I’m an alpha?” Emma was not sure what the question was, what the problem was.

There were butterflies in her stomach and as they fluttered, Emma realized it was not herself she was uncomfortable with. This was nervousness nipping at her innards had to do with everything. She had a family with a son and a future mate. Her partner knew of her, accepted her, and had planned an elaborate birthday. Regina cared enough about her to try to make her birthday special. This was beyond uncharted territory.

“So, let’s go enjoy this,” Emma said to herself in the mirror. She looked good. Her favorite red dress still hugged her body like an old friend and she had managed enough patience to get her curls done again. Of course, Ruby being next to her at the beauty salon probably helped. But, then again, she had to deal with Ruby making fun of her all day, which she expected, but it still sucked.

Taking a deep breath, Emma decided there was nothing to fear. She stepped out of the bedroom and marched downstairs, where Regina waited. She hoped she was dressed appropriately. She did not have much time to worry, though. Before she even saw anyone, Henry whistled and clapped loudly, calling attention to himself. Her eyes fell to him, dressed in house clothes of a Star Wars t-shirt and joggers. He was staying home for the night, even though his mothers would be out.

Emma did not get a chance to totally process Henry because Regina was right next to him and Emma’s body did not know how to react to the sight. Her mouth went dry, even though she was certain she would start to drool any moment, even with their son standing right there. Her stomach flipped, her palms itched, she forgot how to breathe, and her dick jumped, but did not have anywhere to go thanks to her spanx.

Regina was dressed in a three-piece suit, but it was not like a regular suit. Her vest was leather and looked more like a corset than a vest with ties and chains. It was a black with maroon trim, set over a scarlet red shirt. The black pants hugged Regina in a way that made Emma envious and she hoped the night ended with her being able to peel Regina out of those things, provided they had not been painted on.

Regina locked eyes with her and Emma forgot how to talk. Overwhelmed did not cut it. Surely drowning could not be as formidable as her emotions right now. The best she could do was lick her lips and pray she had not smeared her lipstick. And then Regina smirked at her and arched that eyebrow, like she knew Emma was one teasing insult away from coming in her shorts.

“Emma, you are stunning,” Regina said, making Henry roll his eyes.

Emma shifted from one foot to the other, feeling even more out of her depth than before. Maybe Regina sensed it, somehow, and took her hand. It helped settle her a bit.

“You said dress nice.” Emma wanted to pat herself on the back for making it through a sentence and not sounding like a four-year-old child.

“You are amazing,” Regina said, breathless, almost shocked.

“Not like you,” Emma replied.

“Oh, this is for you.” Regina wiggled her hips a little and the chains on the corset sang out in a low tone.

“Can you not be gross?” Henry groaned loudly while Zelena called attention to herself by laughing.

Regina turned and growled in Zelena’s direction, which shut her up immediately. Then, she turned back and looked at Emma so softly it made Emma’s insides melt. Emma could not help giving Regina’s hand a small squeeze and when it was returned, Emma thought she might burst into tears.

“Zelena is going to stay with Henry until David arrives,” Regina said.

Emma nodded. “Yeah, Mom called and said Little Guy still wasn’t feeling too good with the ear infection.” She felt bad that her little brother was sick and she was about to go out for her birthday, but her mother assured her it was fine.

“Yes, but they still wanted to help with your birthday surprise.”

Emma was glad her parents were willing to help, even though her little brother was ill. Hopefully, he would be better for her real birthday, which was in two days. Since Regina was taking her out tonight and needed Henry to stay with his grandparents, she suspected Regina planned to monopolize her for the night and the next day. She had no objection to that.

“So, Henry, be good for your grandparents,” Regina said, as he stepped over.

“I’ll be great for them. The Little Guy has been so miserable with his ear infection, I’m just gonna read to him,” Henry replied as he gave her a hug and she kissed his forehead while managing to keep her dark red lipstick perfect.

“He’s really into Harry Potter, funny enough,” Emma told her son as he came in for a hug from her.

Henry pulled back and looked at her as if she did something wrong. “When did you start reading Harry Potter to him?”

“When I watched him on his most miserable night a couple of days ago. He calmed down enough to go to sleep while I read it. I love Harry Potter.” Books had been a great escape for her in prison. She learned to appreciate the written word quite a bit while incarcerated.

Henry’s mouth dropped open. “We have to watch the movies and read the books together! Oh, my god!” He bounced on his heels.

Emma snickered. “I’d love to.”

Henry threw his hand up for a high-five, which she gave him and he cheered. “Yes!”

Emma was glad he was so excited to do something with her. This was a better birthday present than anything he could hand her, but she did not tell him. She did not want him to think any gift he might have purchased her was not appreciated.

“Come, Emma. We shouldn’t be late.” Regina gave her hand a little tug.

“Right. I can’t wait to see this place.” Emma knew Regina would go over the top, as that was who Regina was. It was not so much that Regina thought high class meant best, but Regina seemed to show how much she loved through how much money she spent.

“Be good,” Zelena called out in the most sarcastic tone she could as they went out the door.

“Oh, I will,” Regina said with a smirk.

“Gross!” Henry screamed as they closed the door. Emma could not help snickering.

“So, are you going to tell me where we’re going?” Emma asked.

“Where’s the fun in that? You do look wonderful, darling,” Regina said as she unlocked the car. She allowed Emma to open the door for her, even though it was supposed to be Emma’s special night. She seemed to understand Emma felt best when she was able to do things for her, much like Regina felt when doing things for Emma. _I gotta work on letting her do more things for me, but I don’t want her to think I’m treating her like a basic omega or something_.

“You look…” Emma shook her head because there were no words for how Regina looked.

Regina smiled. “I noticed you appreciate when I wear clothing similar to something I’d wear in the Enchanted Forest. So, this I had made just for this occasion.”

Emma blinked. “You got an outfit made just for my birthday?”

“Yes. You like it?”

Emma grinned. “You know I do.”

The ride was mostly silent. They held hands and it took little time for Regina to pull into the fanciest restaurant in town, _Jim’s Supernova_. Emma actually knew the owner of the place. A fierce and kind woman named Sarah. Emma wondered why the heck it was named Jim’s.

“I hope you don’t mind, but I actually ordered ahead for us,” Regina said as they were seated immediately.

Emma frowned. “Why?” Yes, Regina was the perceived alpha of their couple, but she did not like the idea of Regina acting like an alpha.

“I know how you are when we go into a new restaurant. You’ll look at the menu and want to order everything that sounds good. We can come back and you can do that. Today, I wanted you to have a meal already in front of you, something I know you’ll like. I’ve also ordered something for myself I know you’ll like and I’m more than willing to share it with you.”

Emma still frowned, even though she did get lost in new menus. There was always so much to try. Still, she did not like Regina ordering for her.

“I need you to not do that again,” Emma said.

Regina nodded. “I’m not trying to dominate you in any way, Emma. I simply want this to go as smoothly as possible. Trust me, I would have loved to see the joy in your face when you realized how many different things you could try, but there is enough choice we’d be there for a while and you’d just have the waiter recommend something or you’d ask me and I’d suggest what I ordered for you. If you don’t want it, you don’t have to eat it. You can order something else. It’s not set in stone.” She shifted a bit in her seat and now Emma felt guilty.

Regina was trying to make her birthday easy for her, not control her. She took a deep breath and stroked Regina’s forearm, as if forgiving her. Regina offered her an uneasy smile and Emma leaned over, kissing the corner of her mouth.

“I appreciate you trying, but you know I like choices because it’s rare for me to get them,” Emma said. One of the things she loved about Regina was that Regina offered her choices all the time, never forced anything on her.

“I know, but it’s also rare for you to get treated to things you like and surprising you with things you like, watching the light in your eyes, knowing I’ve paid enough attention to know what you like…” Regina trailed off, but there was a small smile on her face.

Emma swirled her thumb around the top of Regina’s hand. She did like that Regina knew her favorite things. She liked when Regina surprised her with her favorite things.

“Thank you…” Emma said, as that was the best she could do.

“No, Emma. I will find a balance between surprising you and letting you have your control. I know how it can be.”

Emma leaned in, needing to kiss Regina again. “I mean it, Regina. Thank you.”

“We haven’t gotten started yet.”

“I know, but the thought already is more than anyone’s ever given me.”

“I will give you the stars if you want them.” The look in Regina’s eyes was dead serious.

Emma’s stomach flipped for the second time. She did not have time to dwell on it. Their food arrived and she felt bad for saying anything. A twenty-two ounce rib-eye steak with a giant, loaded baked potato and creamed spinach because Regina would never let her get away without eating a vegetable.

“Emma, I think you’re drooling.” Regina smirked.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a steak this big.” Or that looked so good. She glanced over at Regina’s plate. “What do you have?”

“Oven-roasted chicken breast with a sweet potato casserole and steamed broccoli.”

Emma stuck out her tongue. “You had me until steamed broccoli.”

“You’d like it. Everything here tastes as best as it can.” Regina used her fork to pick up a small bit of broccoli and held it up.

Emma frowned. “It’s my birthday and you’re trying to make me eat both spinach and broccoli? And here it is I thought you loved me.”

“I do love you, which is why I ordered you spinach. You need to eat more vegetables.”

Emma made a face, but still found herself leaning forward to try the broccoli. It was surprisingly not horrible, but she refused to say that. Regina looked smug, like she knew, but Emma did not say a word. Instead, she dived head first into her steak and the moan that left her mouth was obscene. Regina’s eyes twinkled with that twinge of sexy evilness.

“You’ll make that sound for me later on tonight,” Regina promised in a low voice.

Emma did not deny it. “I look forward to it, but right now, lemme enjoy this sin of a steak without worrying about any other sins coming my way.”

Regina smiled, but did not say anything as she watched Emma eat the steak. Emma ate the whole thing and the only thing stopping her from licking her fingers to savor every bit of it was the idea of embarrassing Regina. The potato followed. She even ate the spinach. Despite all of that, she had room for dessert, which was also pre-ordered. She had the best cheesecake of all time with berries.

“What is that you have?” Emma asked.

“Bread pudding. It’s a recipe from the Enchanted Forest, but improved upon with ingredients from here,” Regina replied.

“Can I have some?” Emma had never had bread pudding before.

“Of course.”

Emma waited for what she knew was coming, Regina putting the spoon loaded with bread pudding to her lips. The moaning was probably expected, but Regina’s eyes still lit up as the sounds escaped Emma. There was so much flavor.

“It’s really good,” Emma said.

“I’m sure you like the white chocolate more than anything else. I’m partial to the almonds they’ve put in it.”

“You never cook stuff like this.”

Regina frowned. “I do believe I made you a cheesecake once.”

“Yeah, it was fucking great. I’m trying to get more if you can’t tell.” Emma grinned and Regina smiled.

There was a laugh and soon they were back in the car. Emma thought they would head home since it should be empty, but Regina drove them to a section of the woods. There was a little cabin there. Emma resisted the urge to make a horror movie joke. She did not want to jinx them during her birthday celebration.

“What’s going on here?” Emma asked.

“I figured we could use a quiet little space to do some real celebrating for the next twenty-four hours or so,” Regina replied.

“I like that idea.”

-8-8-8-8-

Regina watched as Emma explored their cabin. There was not much to it, except a very decadent bathroom that she hoped to make long use of during their stay. Emma seemed more intrigued by the bedroom, though.

“This loft bedroom thing is awesome!” Emma called down to her.

“Are you going to stay up there?” Regina asked, slowly making her way up the stairs.

Emma turned and actually giggled as Regina ascended, putting an extra sway into her hips. Emma’s eyes went right to her hips and did not leave them until Regina was right in front of her. Her hands went to Regina’s hips while her eyes went to Regina’s face.

“To answer your question, yes. Yes, I am going to stay up here. And so are you.” Emma leaned down, kissing Regina with everything she had.

Regina returned the affection, enjoying where this was going, as it was exactly what she planned. Her mouth never left Emma’s as she backed Emma up to the bed. Emma fell back, taking Regina with her. They both laughed as they landed.

“Emma, I want to do something for you tonight,” Regina said.

Emma grinned. “Oh, early birthday gift?”

“You could think of that way. I want to fulfill your fantasy.”

Emma’s brow furrowed. “My fantasy?”

“Yes. The one where you get to try out being a beta.”

Emma pulled back a little. “Wait, what? We’re going to do that?”

“Only if you want to, Emma, and we can do it any way you want.”

Emma was silent for a long moment and Regina thought she read this wrong. “So… can I get to see your alpha swag?”

Regina smirked. “I can do that if you want.”

“I think I’m up for a little role reversal. I’m curious as to how it feels on the other end.”

“And I want to make that happen for you. So, I need you to relax while I cast the spell over you.”

Emma nodded. “Is it… it’s not… This won’t be permanent, will it?”

Regina leaned down and gave Emma a soft peck on the lips. “No, beloved, it is not. Almost no transformation is permanent. It takes too much energy. No spell or potion or anything can be sustained that long.”

Emma nodded and Regina took her hand. She exhaled as she muttered the words of the spell. Emma gasped and clutched Regina’s hand with both of hers as the magic flowed into her.

“Breathe, Emma. Just breathe,” Regina told her.

There was another nod and Emma took a deep breath followed by a slow exhale. Regina did not step away until Emma let her go. Emma blinked a few times.

“Uh… this feels… weird…” Emma’s eyes looked down her body.

“I’m sure it does. Let’s get a good look at you.” Regina’s fingers found the zipper to Emma’s dress with ease and took her time pulling it down.

Emma wiggled and shimmed until the dress was off of her shoulders and Regina helped it the rest of the way.  Emma moved further back on the bed, giving Regina a clear look at her strapless bra and underwear that was clearly meant to keep anyone from seeing an outline of her cock through her dress. Now, there was no outline to see.

“Hey, do you mind if I…?” Emma put her hands on the waistband of her underwear.

“It’s your birthday, Emma. Just let me know when I’m needed.” Regina would have no problem wanting Emma delight in and explore her temporary new form.

Emma rushed out of her underwear and looked down. “Oh, wow. This is… I dunno. I expected it and didn’t expect it at the same time.”

“Do you want a mirror to see more?”

Emma shook her head. “No, no. I think I’m good. But…” She tapped herself with a finger and jumped, like she had not expected to feel it. Then, her finger went where her thigh met her outer lip and she poked around there. Regina had to suppress a laugh watching Emma just examine what it was she was dealing with. It took almost two minutes before Emma found one of the more interesting parts and it seemed like an accident. It looked like her hand just slipped.

“Oh!” Emma twitched and her eyes rolled back into her head.

Regina licked her lips. “Beloved… can I…?” She would love to taste Emma. She knew the taste would be the same, as the spell was not designed to alter that, but same taste, different package was certainly intriguing.

“Um… Yes, please.” Emma shifted, moving to the head of the bed.

Regina took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders as she approached the bed with all of the sexy swagger she could muster. Emma watched her with the usual rapt attention and then she jumped again. Regina could only imagine why that was as she kneeled on the bed.

“Are you wet, Emma?” Regina asked in a low voice.

“Um… I think so. It’s kinda weird,” Emma replied.

“Well, let’s see.” Regina dipped down and put one of Emma’s legs on her shoulder while pushing the other further away. “Oh, yes. This is a distinct glisten here. Are you turned on, Emma?”

“Gee, I can’t imagine why. Not like my partner isn’t wearing a suit that’s so hot I’m almost certain it’s criminal. Not like she isn’t walking around the room like she owns the place,” Emma replied.

“Technically…” Regina did not finish, only smiled.

“And even that damned smile is a turn-on. So, you gonna do something while you’re down there?”

“Emma, are you prepared for your first vaginal orgasm?”

Emma let out a long sigh. “How is it that even that sounds sexy coming from you?”

Regina smirked and went in for her first taste with a long swipe of her tongue. It did not surprise her that Emma overreacted and almost slammed her legs shut. Regina held both of limbs apart, so she did not have her ears clapped. When she felt Emma relax, she took another long lick. Emma moaned and her head fell back against the pillows.

“How you doing, Emma?” Regina asked.

“Please, don’t stop.”

“Well, since you said please.” Regina went all in, sucking on Emma’s new anatomy and running her tongue up and down.

“Fuck, I see why you like this.” Emma breathed out and her hand went to Regina’s head, like it typically did when she was on the receiving end of oral. Her other hand went to her nipple, simply circling the pebbled gem with her thumb through her bra.

Regina did not respond, did not want to break her stride. With Emma relaxed enough not to crush her skull with her legs, Regina caressed and stroked Emma’s thighs, earning a loud groan. Regina moaned and closed her eyes, losing herself in Emma, the taste, the fingers in her hair, caressing her scalp. She let a hand wander up and shoved Emma’s bra up, giving Emma’s nipple a pull. Emma cried out and almost jumped off of the bed. She would not last much longer, but Regina wanted to give her the full experience.

“Emma, can I go inside?” Regina asked.

“Huh?” Emma replied.

“Inside.” Regina flipped her tongue at Emma’s opening and Emma’s hips jumped.

“Please!”

Regina was not sure that really answered her question, but she would take it as consent for now. Sealing her lips around Emma’s clit, she barely eased her finger inside when Emma howled and pulsed around her. She paused her finger, but took light, little swipes with her tongue. Emma yelped and moaned and then melted into the bed. Regina smiled to herself and eyed how content Emma looked. Step one was a success.

“Did you enjoy that?” Regina asked.

Emma only made a noise and closed her eyes. Regina could only smile to herself. After a few moments, Emma’s hand caressed her cheek and Emma smiled.

“I see why you like that so much,” Emma said, her voice almost a whisper.

“Yes, well, I’ve had a working knowledge of your fondness for blowjobs for a long while,” Regina replied, which probably was not the right thing to say. Unfortunately, it was too late to take back. She hoped Emma did not take it the way she meant it, as in she had many blowjobs in her life, so she understood why Emma liked them.

“I could give you a blowjob in return.” She looked like she was going to sit up, but did not make it. Her eyes sparkled and she seemed to glow.

Regina shook her head. “No, thank you.” It would seem Emma was still high from her orgasm. It was probably strange to experience, so her brain was trying to process it. “But, would you like me to fuck you now?”

Emma grinned. “That sounds like it would be amazing. Lemme see what you used to wield, oh Alpha of Alpha.”

Regina frowned as she eased away. “I would never touch you with that… beast.” She shuddered at the very idea. “I have something that will make this night as pleasant as it has been.”

“Well, lemme see.” Emma wiggled into a position where she was half-sitting up. “Oh, do you think you could do, like, a strip tease?”

Regina rolled her eyes. “Yes, I can do that since it’s your birthday.” Emma was so lucky she loved her, though. She would never do this for anyone else.

Emma actually squealed. “Oh! This is the best birthday ever!”

It was a struggle, but Regina kept from rolling her eyes again. Somehow, Emma was able to get to her purse and her phone. Regina had to take a deep breath to calm herself and remind herself it would not be good form to injure Emma during her birthday surprise, even as _Birthday Sex_ filled the cabin. Regina wound her hips and started undoing her vest. And then, to make this even more enjoyable for Emma, she decided to sing along.

“It’s your birthday, so I know you want to ride out,” she began with the opening line and slowly undressed as the song played on. She chimed in again. “Just tell me where you want your gift, girl…”

“I’ve been fiendin’, waking up in the late night dreaming about your loving,” Emma sang with a loud laugh.

Regina dropped her suit jacket and the corset followed. She plucked at the buttons of her shirt. “See you sexy and those jeans got me on ten…” The shirt fell open.

“I’d be on ten, too, if I could.” Emma bit her bottom lip and waved Regina closer.

Regina wasted no time fulfilling the request. Emma took her by her shirt and pulled down for a kiss. Regina pulled away and smiled. As the song played on, she sang again. “You kiss me so sweetly, taste just like Hershey’s. Just tell me how you want your gift, girl.”

Emma laughed more and Regina felt ridiculous, but a good type of ridiculous. She shrugged out of her shirt and her hands went to her pants. She eased them to her hips.

“It’s the best day of the year,” Emma sang.

Regina chuckled and then shimmed out of her pants, stepping out of them and her heels. Emma bit her lip again and the song was forgotten as she reached out, caressing Regina’s bare stomach with both hands. Her hands drifted low enough for Regina to understand her new curiosity.

“Feel free to touch me if you like or even reveal your new gift,” Regina said.

Emma’s hands wasted no time sliding below her waist and feeling the outline of her addition. Regina twitched at the contact and exhaled. She forgot how things felt with a penis. It was strange, even compared to when she used to have one.

“Are you making fun of me?” Emma asked with a pout.

Regina’s brow furrowed. “I would never, beloved. Why would you even say that?”

Scoffing, Emma gave her a gentle tug. “This is smaller than I am, oh Alpha of Alphas.”

Regina shook her head. “Because this isn’t some damn alpha porn movie, Emma. I don’t want to hurt you, first of all. I want this to be pleasurable for you, second of all. And, third of all, but the most important thing is you’re the perfect size for me. Isn’t that what matters? Or are you planning to go find some other omegas to show off to, some other omega to fill?”

Emma scowled. “Of course not!”

“Then, stop worrying about your size.” Regina leaned down, giving Emma a lingering kiss. “You’re perfect. Physically speaking.”

Emma put on a playful pout. “Aw, why’d you have to go and add that last part? I could’ve been practically perfect in every way.”

“This night is taking a very awkward turn with you quoting _Mary Poppins_ right after playing _Birthday Sex_ and requesting a strip tease, which you got.”

“Because it’s the best day of the year, girl,” Emma sang.

Regina groaned. “It’s getting harder and harder to want to make love to you, right now.”

“That’s not true.” Emma caressed Regina’s hard length. “But, something is getting harder. So, how opposed to you to having music play while we do this?”

“It’s your day, Emma. I’d do this if you wanted an audience here.”

Emma’s face twisted up. “Yeah, I don’t think you’ll ever have to worry over that. Do you want something like that?”

Regina shook her head. “No.” She managed to avoid saying, “been there, done that.” One slip was enough for tonight, especially with Emma still being insecure about her size. She did not want Emma to start questioning where she ranked on Regina’s long list of lovers because even though there was no contest, Regina was not sure she would be able to convince Emma of that.

“Okay, good. So… I sort of have a playlist prepared for this.”

“Of course you do.”

“Hey, I don’t say anything when you want to keep the piano music going.”

“First off, it’s classical and less distracting because there aren’t any lyrics. Also, you get a very interesting rhythm to certain songs. And don’t get me started when I play some light jazz.” It made for a memorable night.

Emma arched an eyebrow. “I do?”

“Yes, but is this really the conversation you want to have now or do you want to feel me?”

“Fuck, you know I do.”

“Then, how about you take my dick out?” Regina said. She disliked the taste of the words in her mouth, but from the way Emma groaned, she assumed Emma enjoyed them.

Emma dragged Regina’s thong down her legs, like she would any other night. Regina hissed at the feel of the material sliding against her. Before she could fully gather her wits, Emma’s hand was on her, stroking her. And then Emma’s mouth wrapped around her and she stepped away.

“I don’t need you to do that,” Regina said. Oral sex when she had a cock was an act of submission, even now to her, and she did not need Emma on the list of people who had done this for her.

“Why? I want to try. Besides, you taste the same and I love the way you taste.”

Regina sighed. “It’s your birthday. First, let me…” She reached out and undid Emma’s bra. She tossed it on the floor.

“Oh, I get to do that, too!” Emma sat up and stared at Regina’s demi-cut bra for a moment before getting rid of it. Now, they were both naked. Regina did not have time to do much else as Emma’s mouth was on her again.

Emma wrapped her lips around the head of Regina’s cock and she went to work. There was no hesitation on her part or anything, just went right to it, swallowing Regina as best she could. Regina sighed and her legs relaxed to the point she almost fell over and then there were teeth. She hissed and bit her fist to avoid saying anything.

Emma pulled away. “Sorry! Sorry!”

“It’s okay.” Regina had been scraped by teeth before. It was never pleasant. “You don’t have to do this, you know? I don’t need it. I just want to make you feel good.”

Emma frowned slightly. “I don’t like receiving and not giving, though.”

“I know you don’t, but it’s okay to be selfish tonight. I want you to be selfish. This is all about you. So, how about you just lie back and we move to the next thing?” Regina hoped Emma did not take offense that. It was not so much that the blowjob was not good. It was just that Regina did not need it.

Emma nodded and settled against the pillows again. Regina climbed onto the bed and they met in lips and limbs, embracing each other. They moved against each other, skin against skin, feeling each other, physically, emotionally. Emma’s hands found their way to Regina’s back and ran up and down the either side of her spine.

“Let me get you ready,” Regina said.

Emma nodded and Regina’s kisses drifted down to her jaw and then her neck. Her hands kneaded Emma’s breasts just as she liked it. Eventually, her lips reached a nipple and she flickered the gem with her tongue. Emma let loose a little moan. With her mouth occupying one mound, Regina let her hand ease down Emma’s body and she sought Emma’s new treasure. Emma cried out again as Regina’s fingers found her soaking.

“Emma, I’m going to go inside you again, okay?” Regina said.

“Yes, please, do that.”

Regina smiled. “Looks like I’ve fucked some manners into you.”

“Do you know how fucking sexy it is to hear you to say fuck?”

Regina chuckled, as she imagined that was the case. She eased a finger into Emma and listened as her breath hitched. Emma’s hips chased her finger and little, pleased sounds escaped Emma. It was good to know Emma enjoyed this, body begging for more. Soon enough, Regina felt it was safe to push a second one in. Emma clutched her shoulders as she felt the pressure of two fingers. Regina decided to return to Emma’s mouth, kissing her softly, slowly, delighting in her lips and tongue. The hand on Emma’s breast remained there, molding willing flesh just as Emma liked it. The perfect distraction in place.

Regina removed her fingers, earning a whine into her mouth. She gave Emma’s nipple a pull and the whine became a sigh. Then, she slid her cock through Emma’s wetness, making sure to bump Emma’s clit. Emma clutched her shoulders again, gripping her tightly.

“Fuck, Regina. That feels so good,” Emma groaned and stretched beneath her.

“Hopefully, this will feel good as well.” Regina lined herself up with Emma’s entrance. Moving in for another kiss, she gave Emma’s nipple another tug and pushed inside.

Emma screamed and clawed her back. There was blood, she was certain of that, but did not care. The pain did not even register as ecstasy flooded her system. Emma felt good around her fingers, but surrounding her cock was an entirely different, new, mind-blowing experience. It took all of her willpower to avoid pumping her hips without knowing if Emma was ready.

“Fuck!” Emma threw her head back.

Regina took slow breaths, doing her best to keep from panting. “Emma, beloved, tell me when I can move.”

Emma let loose her own long exhale. “Shit, I feel so fucking stretched. Is this how you feel?”

“I doubt it. You always feel perfect inside of me. Should I pull out?” Regina doubted she could imagine how Emma had to feel right now. Her first time had been far from gentle. She hoped this was better for Emma than it had been for her.

Emma shook her head rapidly. “Don’t you fucking dare. I want this experience.” Emma held her tighter, but it was in a desperate way. She took a few more breaths. “Okay, I think you can move now.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to hurt you.” 

“You’re not. It feels good. Move.”

Regina nodded and shifted her hips, pushing deeper into Emma, who keened and scratched again. To make sure Emma enjoyed this, she put her hand between them and caressed Emma’s clit. Emma cried out and threw her head back again. Each thrust got a little easier as Emma became slicker. Emma’s moans filled the house along with the sound of their skin meeting.

“Holy fuck!” Emma howled and it took Regina a long second to realize Emma was climaxing. The way she gripped and pulsed around Regina was beyond amazing. Regina was tempted to fuck her through the orgasm, but she was not sure if Emma would be able to handle that.

“Enough?” Regina asked, pausing, but remaining inside of Emma. She was not sure how Emma’s stamina translated in having a vagina compared to when she had a penis.

Emma’s breathing was hot and heavy. “Did you…?”

“This is about you, Emma. Was that enough or would you like to continue?” She hoped Emma wanted to continue. She had so many plans for the night.

“Lemme be on top.”

Regina had no problem with that. It would give her time to heal her back. They rolled together, somehow managing to keep their connection. Regina had to exhale as they moved, though. Emma felt so good and she had to figure she felt the same as Emma let loose several small moans as they got into position. As they settled, Emma pushed herself up while Regina moved her shoulders against the pillows. For a moment, they were both still and then Emma looked at her a little confused.

“How do I…?”

Regina smiled. “How do you ride me? However you like.”

Emma sneered at her. “Shut up. I’ve never done this before and it’s my first time with a vagina, so gimme a break, okay?”

Regina chuckled. “You’re rather rude for someone who has gotten two orgasms out of me.”

Emma only grunted as she tried to get into a comfortable position. Regina helped, hands on Emma’s hips, silently moving her to where Regina felt she would be secure and content. Emma leaned forward, hands mushed against Regina’s breasts. Holding Emma’s weight was a little tougher than Regina imagined. Emma always made it seem so simple. Regina had never really let or ordered any other partner to ride her, as it seemed to give the other person power.

When Emma started moving, Regina did not think anything about the weight pressing down on her. It started out slow and quickly gained speed. Regina dug her heels into the bed to remain steady as Emma panted above her, eagerly chasing another orgasm. Regina lifted her hips, meeting each movement from Emma, gliding in and out of Emma went delightful ease. Emma whined and cried out with each thrust. Regina could feel Emma tensing up, her core rippling, and then she came. Emma roared and collapsed onto Regina, panting into her neck.

“Enough?” Regina asked.

Emma’s only answer was a kiss to her neck and then she fell asleep. Regina smiled to herself and waved her hand, magically moving the sheet to cover them. She did not shift back to normal, thinking about how she enjoyed having Emma inside of her, even when they were done making love.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma groaned at the sound of the birds chirping. She wished they would fly south for the winter already. She was not sure what time it was, but too early was definitely accurate. She tried to hide in Regina’s warmth, but it did not stop the noise.

“You come any closer and you’ll end up sharing my skin,” Regina muttered, caressing Emma’s side.

“I wouldn’t mind being inside of you,” Emma remarked.

Regina snickered. “You mean you’ve had enough of me being inside of you?”

“That was fun.” Emma pulled Regina closer to her, to the point where Regina was halfway on her now. “In fact, makes me wanna have more fantasies, but I don’t want it all the time, you know?”

“Yes, I know. That’s the fun thing about fantasies. You do them, see how they feel, and decide if it’s for you. Then, you decide how often you want to go back to the fantasy if you liked it.”

Emma smiled. “I liked it, but again, I don’t want it all the time.”

“I understand, Emma. It’s like I enjoyed our round of anal, but I wouldn’t want it all the time. Sometimes, a fantasy doesn’t even have become reality. It can stay in your mind. It’s however you want it. I’m just happy you enjoyed this.”

“No, it was awesome.” It was. “I really do wanna sit down and think of some other fantasies. It’s fun, but I’m happy to be back to normal, too.” Right before they fell asleep for the night, Regina returned their bodies to normal. She never thought she would be so happy to have her cock back. She had not felt that different with a vagina, so maybe sex parts did not matter. But, if that was the case, being an alpha would not matter and she did not think that was true. She had experienced too many horrible alphas to believe they were just awful point blank and it had nothing to do with them thinking having a dick gave them power.

Regina kissed her forehead. “Again, I’m glad you liked it. Please, feel free to share any fantasies with me. I would be delighted to make them happen. Birthday or not.”

“This birthday has been great and it’s not even done yet. This has been perfect, but I really want to go home and blow out birthday candles with Henry and Little Guy and Robbie and Mom and Dad.”

“That’s for tomorrow. For now, the day is ours in this cozy little cottage. Any ideas what you want to do?”

Emma grinned. “Well, since I can’t kill the stupid birds outside…” She kissed Regina with all she had.

“You are such a romantic.” The sarcasm practically oozed from Regina’s voice. “Good to know I rank just under avian homicide.”

“Damn right you do.” Emma kissed her again.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Emma watches Robbie again while Regina hangs out with her sister and best friend.


	5. Acceptance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters; Disney/ABC does.
> 
> Public Service Announcement: there is sadly no sexy times in this chapter, but there is bonding and fluff.

 

5: Acceptance

“Are you sure you don’t have a problem watching Robbie?” Regina asked Emma as Regina finished refreshing her makeup.

Emma rolled her eyes from her spot on the bed. “I don’t mind. I like the kid and you should hang out with your sister. She wants your friendship and you like having a sister, even though she’s annoying as hell.”

Regina sighed. “She really should be the younger of the two of us.”

“Probably. But, yeah, stop acting like I’m some asshole alpha who doesn’t think I should watch pups.”

“I would never think that and that’s a terrible stereotype. I think we both know a true alpha would delight in watching a pup to learn more about them for when they have their own or would delight in watching their own pups because they want to protect them.” Regina really wanted to get Emma out of the habit of bringing up negative alpha stereotypes. She needed to start getting comfortable in her own skin. She was an alpha and that was the way it was.

Emma tilted her head, like that did not sound right to her at first. “That kinda makes sense.”

“Of course it does. An alpha wants the best for their pups, just like an omega, just like a beta. People like to make up stories about these insane, dominating, power-hungry alphas, but I think it’s best to remember that some of these things come from our natural instincts. An alpha’s natural instinct is to protect family and, yes, sometimes they want to show off to show they can protect their family. That’s been twisted into alphas wanting to strut for the world to show they run everything, that they’re in charge.”

Emma scratched her chin. “I do want to protect my family.”

“Of course you do. Do you think you could do me a favor while I’m gone?”

Emma smiled. “Anything.”

“I saved a documentary on wolves. I was going to watch it with Robbie, but can you watch it with her now?” Regina asked. Her niece was suddenly fascinated with dogs and Regina was happy to indulge her in any way possible. The documentary might help Emma, though. Some people still clung to the disproved idea that wolves had alphas and omegas. Emma could see what an “alpha” wolf did and find it was not so terrible. It might help her get comfortable with the idea of alphas and build on not every alpha was like the horrible ones she had encountered before coming to Storybrooke.

“It’s funny, Little Guy is into dogs now, too. We were at the park yesterday and he practically shot off after Pongo, like Pongo isn’t the size of three of him,” Emma said with a smile.

“You want to have him over as well? The three of you could have a play date?” It was only partially teasing.

Emma turned her mouth up a little. “You think I could handle both of them?”

“Why not? You have watched both of them before and you know what to do. The only issue I think might arise is if you ask, your mother will decide to come with him, so the two of you can bond as well.” Snow liked to situate herself in spaces she was not invited.

Emma frowned slightly. “She might think I couldn’t watch both of them for a long period of time.”

That could be true for any number of reasons when it came to Snow. “Well, you could always tell her you just want to hang out with your two favorite short people.”

“Yeah, but then she’ll take it personal.”

“That she would. Well, how about you stick to the original plan of watching Robbie and then later in the week we can arrange for both of them. I’ll even keep Snow occupied while you enjoy the pups.”

Emma’s face lit up. “You love me, don’t you?”

“Obviously. I’m willing to act as the decoy for your mother so you can be happy.” If that was not love, Regina did not know what was.

“Good, so enjoy your time out. It’s good that you have friends.” Emma’s face twitched a bit after that and Regina could only guess why.

She was going out with Zelena, yes, but also with Maleficent, Lily, and Tinker Bell. Regina was certain Emma had a problem with her going out with just one of those people, even if she tried her best to hide it. Regina was happy Emma tried to act like she was okay with Regina being out with Maleficent, but ever since Emma got it into her head that Maleficent was a probably ex, she never looked happy to hear about her.

“It’s good you spend time with Zelena, too. Good for both of you,” Emma added on.

“You should spend time with your friends, as well.”

Emma laughed. “You have no idea what I do at work, huh? Good to know you’re not spying.”

“You’re making it sound like I should start.”

“Unless there’s a Big Bad roaming the streets, crime is usually pretty slow around here. I do paperwork and Ruby pops in a bunch. Probably because Dorothy works there now, but my point is, I see my friends a lot. You don’t have to worry about me.”

Regina accepted that, as it was probably true. Storybrooke had a low crime rate, even with the Curse broken. She liked to think it was because no one really wanted to get on her bad side, but it could also be because the worst of the worst were her and her friends. The only really big criminal they had to worry about was Gold. And worry about him they did since they doubted he wanted to play nice after Henry’s birthday celebration.

“How do I look?” Regina asked once she was done with everything.

Emma breathed out through her nose and climbed off the bed. She tried to give a sexy approach, but it was hard in her tattered joggers. Although, since they hung low on her hips and left nothing to the imagination as to what she had underneath them, Regina felt like it was sexy enough for her. _Definitely in love_. Emma put her hands on Regina’s hips.

“You look good enough to eat, so when you get back, that’s just what I’m going to do, okay?” Emma asked, as if she needed permission to make a plan.

“Just that?” Regina smirked and her eyebrow ticked up. She could already picture Emma tearing her little black dress from her. It would be fun.

“Right now, yeah, just that. I just want to spend a night with my tongue between your legs.”

“Promises, promises.” Although Emma had been a little more fascinated with her vagina ever since Emma had one a couple of weeks ago. Regina was not sure why that was and Emma was never able to put it into words, but Regina had reaped the benefits of this curiosity.

With that, they exchanged a kiss and then Regina went downstairs. Zelena waited for her with Robbie. Henry was out with friends, but would be back before Regina would. Emma felt like she could handle both of them when the time came and Regina did not dispute it. Henry would not be hard to deal with, after all.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma handled dinner herself, calling for pizza. While she loved Regina’s cooking, it was always nice to have junk food every now and then. She was not surprised when Ruby popped up with her pizza.

“Did you kill the delivery guy on his way here?” Emma snickered.

“When I smelled the meat lover’s pizza, I couldn’t help myself,” Ruby grinned.

“I thought you were going to go out with Dorothy tonight,” Emma said. She invited Ruby over when Regina decided she was going to go out, but Ruby said she had a thing with her girlfriend.

Ruby snorted. “I thought I was, too, but she found out about this seminar at the last minute she wanted to.”

Emma’s face scrunched up. “What seminar?” It was not a Storybrooke sheriff thing.

“Something about continuing education for adults here. I dunno.” Ruby shrugged.

Emma laughed. “You are a terrible girlfriend.”

“Nah, she actually didn’t want me to go. It was going to be full of newbies and she didn’t want to seem like she had a guide with her. Something like having your mom drop you off your first day of high school or something, I guess. Point being, my evening is free again.” Ruby popped open the pizza box as Robbie waddled over to her.

Robbie squealed and reached for Ruby. Ruby grinned and picked her up. Robbie giggled and bounced, slamming her little feet into Ruby’s legs.

“I think she knows you’re a werewolf,” Emma said.

Ruby shrugged. “Why not? I know she’s a little witch!” She tickled Robbie, who giggled and squirmed. “Where’s her mama?”

“I told you Zelena and Regina are hanging out with Maleficent and Lily.”

“Can some place stand all that alpha power in one place?”

“Fuck if I know.” It was Emma’s turn to shrug. Even if they were not all alphas, they gave off enough alpha energy to bring a place down.

“That’s probably one hell of a party, though. Did they take Tink?”

Emma nodded. “Regina decided to, even though she felt like it would be a little weird. She feels like Tink doesn’t fit in with the others, so she likes to hang out with Tink separately. But, she felt like if she could take Zelena anywhere, she should be able to take Tink, which I agree with. At least Tink’s cluelessness is cute. Zelena is just nuts.”

“Yeah, but just nuts is usually good for partying and fucking.”

“Dude!” Emma motioned to the child in Ruby’s arms.

Ruby winced. “Oh, sorry! Not that I think about Zelena that way either.”

“I should hope not. Isn’t your girlfriend an alpha? You gonna have her go start a fight with Zelena,” Emma remarked.

“If Zelena being the Wicked Witch hasn’t started a fight, I don’t think my brain vomit is going to be the thing to start it,” Ruby replied.

“You say that now until Dorothy wants to show Zelena who’s in charge.”

Ruby waved that off as she put Robbie down. She grabbed a slice of pizza and took a huge bite. “Dorothy isn’t that kind of alpha. She’s very secure in herself and our relationship. Which is good, since I flirt with almost anything that moves.” She blew a kiss to Emma.

Emma rolled her eyes, but she realized that every alpha she now knew did not fit what she heard and learned about alphas throughout her life. Her father, Dorothy, and possibly Maleficent. They were decent people who did not try to lord over anyone. They did not go out of their way to hurt people or subjugate them. None of them tried to dominate the omegas they knew either. None of them tried to dominate the landscape beyond just having boisterous personalities. She would like to think they were the norm, but they were three out of dozens and dozens of alphas she had met in her life. They were the exception to the rule, not the rule. _Or maybe things were different in the other world_.

Emma did not know and was not sure if she wanted to ask. She did not want to find out the exceptions to the rule were the exceptions across worlds. That would be depressing.

Emma grabbed a slice of pizza. “So, you ever consider having pups with Dorothy?”

“Yeah, every now and then. As a werewolf, I go through a heat cycle, like an omega, even though I’m a beta. So, I get all baby crazy during heat. She gets baby crazy during her rut.”

“Have you guys synced?”

“Dude! Do you not realize how personal that is?” Ruby asked.

Emma shrugged and glanced away for a moment. “Um… No, I didn’t realize it was. I’m not totally up on what’s appropriate and inappropriate when it comes to sex stuff. I mean, even before prison, which screws up what’s normal and what’s not, I spent about three years on the street with sex workers. I wasn’t a sex worker, but I worked adjacent to them.”

Ruby’s brow furrowed and she eyed Emma. “Is that code for you robbed johns?”

Emma did not want to come right out and say that was basically what she did, as it sounded pretty bad. “Not so much robbed, but a lot of wallets went missing and stuff like that, as they were leaving the hotel rooms. Funny, a lot of them never realized they bumped into me more than once when they came to see their favorites.” People probably never suspected how mushy their brains were after a good orgasm and how easy it was to pluck belongings off of them.

Ruby nodded. “Sounds like a good con. Should I ask how old you were doing this?”

Emma shook her head. “I don’t think that’s relevant, but I will say, it clearly colored my perception on what’s appropriate and what isn’t involving some sex stuff.” 

“Okay, well, now you know asking about someone’s sync isn’t cool. That’s really personal, like asking about someone sex status. I don’t mind talking about that with you, but not everyone is going to be so open, sort of like you are.”

Emma frowned. “What are you talking about?”

“Emma, we both know you’re not interested in telling the world what you are. Hell, remember, you told me you took all your drugs to try to hide it? Which, I want to remind you, wasn’t smart.”

“I know. You don’t have to keep reminding me.”

“I’m just saying, you have to understand some people are more like you with their sex status, sexuality, and syncing than they are like me.”

“I’ve got a lot to learn.” She had always known her view of the world was a little tilted because of the way she was raised… or was not raised, however it went.

“It’s not your fault and I don’t hold it against you.” Ruby smiled. “Now, what are we watching?”

“Well, Robbie was all about this wolf documentary until you showed up. She’s a weird little kid because she was watching this like she totally understood what was going on,” Emma said. She was not paying it much mind, more concerned with what time it was. Partially because she was expecting Henry home and partially because she wanted Regina to come back already.

“She’s probably just enjoying the movement and loving whenever a wolf shows up on screen, proving she’s got good taste. That’s why we’re cool, bud.” Ruby leaned down and held her hand up for a high-five. Robbie did not disappoint, giving Ruby a very enthusiastic high-five.

“You’re going to be so hurt if she ever grows out of this dog stage. With Regina for an aunt, you know horses are going to take the number one spot eventually.”

Ruby scoffed. “Nah. I’ve learned one thing about Regina and she’s actually got a soft spot for all animals, not just horses. There’s a reason why Pongo jumps on her whenever he sees her and she hasn’t turned him inside out yet. It also lets me know Regina isn’t all bad. So, Robbie here is definitely going to be my bud for life. Me, her, and Neal are going to be the three musketeers.”

Emma frowned a little. “You can’t be best friends with three generations of Charmings.” It was already weird she and her mother shared Ruby as a best friend.

“Watch me now!” Ruby clapped her hands. “Besides, does it really count as three generations? Technically, you and Neal are the same generation.”

“Please, let’s not try to figure this out right now. I didn’t have enough beer for this to not be weird.”

“And I didn’t bring any alcohol that would make it funny, so yeah, we’ll leave that one alone.”

Emma laughed and turned her attention back to her pizza, finishing a slice easy. She realized she probably should have ordered two. She could eat one herself and Ruby could do the same. They were both going to be hungry if Ruby planned to stay awhile.

“Can you smell me being an alpha now?” Emma asked. Ruby had not been able to tell when she was on the beta drugs, not until Regina’s heat a few months ago threatened to peel her skin off as desire scratched at every inch of her.

Ruby nodded as she started in on another slice. “More or less. It’s subtle to me and I would doubt it if I didn’t know, so I know no one else has picked up on it. I’m just glad you’re not taking drugs anymore.”

“Regina made me go to the doctor to make sure nothing is wrong with me. It was the first time in my adult life going to the doctor.”

Ruby smiled and patted Emma on the leg. “I’m glad she’s taking care of you. What did the doctor say?”

“I’m pretty healthy, but the drugs stunted a lot of my growth. I’m kinda scrawny for an alpha.”

“I don’t think size matters. People come in all shapes and sizes regardless of status. There’s still a lot of fight in you. We know that because if anyone tries to mess with your family or your mate, you take ‘em down.”

Emma had never thought about it that way. That protectiveness she felt for her family, she always chalked it up to her desire to keep them safe because she was just supposed to or because she refused to lose any more people in her life. She never considered the alpha inside of her was the thing that made her feel like she was supposed to. Maybe it was like Regina said, alphas instinctively protect family, like the wolves in the show.

“I think we’re going to have to order some more pizza,” Ruby said as she ate another slice.

“You do that. I have to feed the pup anyway.” Emma got up to get Robbie, who was glued to the television, probably not even thinking about it being dinnertime. It was adorable.

-8-8-8-8-

By midnight, Regina, Zelena, and Maleficent made their way to Maleficent’s new condo. Lily had found love for the night at the club they visited and Tink could not hold her liquor, so they dropped her off at her room at Granny’s… or so Regina hoped. They were not even close to sober either, but she felt sure they got Tink home safely and to the right room.

“You better have all the chocolate I gave you for your housewarming,” Regina said as they tumbled into the place.

“Chocolate and wine. My friend, you couldn’t get more bourgeois if you tried,” Maleficent teased.

“It’s called class.”

“Class from the tomboy who loved telling me tales of how she rode horses bareback when her mother wasn’t looking?”

“You can still have class as a tomboy.”

For all her class, Regina ended up sitting on the floor with them, with chocolate and wine. The only thing she needed to make this better would be Emma lying in her lap, so she could run her fingers through soft, blond tresses and feed Emma chocolate every now and then. _Oh, you are so in love it’s disgusting me and I’m you!_

“This realm is very good with the idea of clubbing. I would have loved it in the Old World,” Maleficent said, taking a healthy gulp of her wine.

“I’m surprised you didn’t turn into a dragon,” Zelena said.

“And I’m surprised your skin isn’t green with envy from all the attention I got,” Maleficent shot back.

“It’s only because you ooze alpha pheromones like some kind of aerosol spray. It’s quite disgusting.” Zelena made a face.

Maleficent was unimpressed. “I’m sorry your weak beta pheromones do nothing. Maybe you should give the potion a rest.”

Zelena made a noise like she choked on her tongue. “Excuse you!”

“My dear, while I’ve been trapped underground for twenty-eight years, I haven’t been living under a rock. I know a spell when I’m around one. If you want to attract someone to you, be yourself. Be the proud, bitchy omega you are.”

“Yet you say nothing of your friend not accepting who she is,” Zelena pointed out.

“Hey, why does this have to be about me?” Regina chimed in. She was technically not ashamed of her status, but did not want the hassle of others knowing.

Maleficent regarded her with a tilted head. “Yes, good point. Why are you still using the spell? We both know if someone says something offensive about you being an omega, you’ll set them on fire.”

“This is true and nothing they say to me now would be different than what they would have said to me as the Evil Queen. They could challenge me if they wanted to and I would still destroy them,” Regina said, holding a piece of chocolate in between her fingers, feeling it melt from her body warmth.

Zelena looked at her like she was mad. “You seriously think it wouldn’t change anything? They would do more than openly mock and challenge you. You know people treat you differently when they think your one job in life is to bear children.”

“And, considering your age, you’re a failure at that one job,” Maleficent added.

“And you call Zelena a bitch,” Regina said.

“Although…” Maleficent tapped her chin. “I would love to see you start a collection of penises in a jar.”

“Disgusting,” Regina replied.

“Yes, and then people can make all sorts of crude remarks about how you take them home and suck them like some degenerate cock-starved omega,” Zelena hissed, lip curled.

“How am I supposed to enjoy chocolate and wine with all this talk of penises in jars?” Regina made a face before eating another chocolate. It was a struggle to enjoy, but she would soldier on. She needed to lick her fingers clean, trying to ignore the self-conscious feeling crawling through her.

“What, are you not a fan of penises now? Probably imagining what you’ll do to one when you get home, right?” Maleficent threw a chocolate at her.

Regina decided it was time to disgust them right back. “Nothing to imagine really. I will ride the one at home if she’s still awake and if she isn’t, I might just wake her with a blowjob, which we would both enjoy.” She then made a show of sucking the chocolate from her forefinger. Screw them.

“Now how am I supposed to enjoy my chocolate?” Maleficent huffed and had the nerve to glare at Regina.

“You’re the one who brought it up. So, yes, I like to keep my alpha satisfied and she keeps me the same,” Regina replied with a smirk.

“You truly are the most evil amongst us,” Maleficent remarked.

Zelena curled her lip. “You actually put it in your mouth? The most degrading act known to humankind and you do it without problem?”

“Careful, Regina, you’re losing all of your big sister’s respect,” Maleficent said.

Regina sucked her teeth and rolled her eyes. “Forgive me for loving the alpha who was kind enough to watch your child enough for me to consider granting her not only pleasure, but showing her she trusted the right person with her heart.”

“Oh, vomit. You’re seriously trying to spin the greatest act of submission?” Zelena scoffed. “Do you fall to your knees on command as well? Ask how Emma wants you?”

“Should I not want to please my mate? Or are you upset you haven’t had a chance to steal her from me?” Regina glared at her sister. She never considered Zelena might try such a thing, but she also never considered Emma would fall for such a thing.

Zelena sucked her teeth. “And why should I want your scrawny alpha?”

“Why should you want Robin Hood?” Regina countered.

“You two, please don’t start. If I wanted a fight, I could’ve stayed with my daughter,” Maleficent said.

“That would’ve made her booty call awkward,” Regina pointed out.

“Maybe they’re into that sort of thing,” Zelena said.

Maleficent groaned. “You truly are the most annoying being in all of creation. You shouldn’t give Regina a hard time for finding some who loves her and accepts her for who she is. After all, isn’t that why you’re in her life? She loves you for who you are, like family should.”

Zelena scowled. “So, I should be proud of her sucking dick?”

“Just as vulgar as I should expect. I’ve also been known to lick her knot if you care to know,” Regina added. If this went on longer, she would let them know way more about her love life than any of them wanted.

Zelena groaned. “I’m sure you’ll be fetching her slippers any day now as well.”

“Yes, and maybe I’ll stop welcoming you into my home. How dare you look down on me because I enjoy pleasuring the woman I love? Because I want to build a happy home with her? You think just because I’ve accepted being an omega for her that I won’t hesitate to cut you or anyone else out of my life if necessary? That I won’t be willing to do whatever I must for my own happiness?” Regina demanded.

Zelena had the nerve to glare at her. “Oh, so she’s more family to you than I am?”

“She loves me unconditionally, which is more than what you seem to do right now. I’ve had a lifetime of being deemed less than by Mother and then by a rotten King. I won’t take any more of it, especially from someone who claims to be my sister. If you were my sister, you would be happy that I found love, as I am happy for you to have had Robbie, even though you only did it to spite and hurt me. Have I judged you for that?” Regina snapped. How dare Zelena act so high and mighty?!

Zelena flinched and looked like she sucked a lemon. “It sounds like you have.”

“I haven’t. I’m more than happy to have you in my life, despite the fact that you tried to erase me from existence. I even look at you and I thank the stars you never had to experience our mother because I know she would’ve torn you down and I never want that for you, yet here you sit doing exactly what she would have done to me. Tell me how foolish I am for wanting to mate for love, tell me how you think I’m weak for being an omega, tell me how you think I’m only good for waiting on people hand and foot. Tell me!” Regina punched her fist into her palm and fire sparked from the impact.

“Hey, calm down, fire starter. If anyone burns this place to the ground, it’ll be Lily when she accidentally snores flames in her sleep,” Maleficent said.

Zelena looked away, almost like she might feel guilty, almost like she was not a complete sociopath like she used to be. Regina was unconvinced. Maleficent reached over, rubbing Regina’s knee.

“Don’t be this way. You two love each other and I’m not going to let you rip each other apart after we just had a great night out. Especially not after you helped me connect with Lily,” Maleficent said. She turned to Zelena. “Look, Zelena, I’m sure it’s hard for you to watch your little sister have it all, but you have to stop being angry with her over your own insecurities.”

Zelena scowled. “I’m not insecure.”

“You’re not happy that you’re an omega because of the perceptions that come with being an omega and I’m sure once upon a time you would’ve been able to commiserate with Regina over that, but not now. She’s moved on and you’re still at the same point. It’s not her fault, but it’s not your fault either,” Maleficent said.

“Who said it was my fault?” Zelena growled.

“Your anger,” Maleficent said in a deadpan. “You need to calm down and just be happy for your sister, as she’s been happy for you. Regina has given you so much. Now, it’s your turn to give back to her by supporting the fact that she has a family. And, as someone who knew her before she nose dived off the deep end, I have to say it’s good to see her right where she would’ve been had Rumple not been a jackass.”

Zelena glanced over at Regina, still frowning as if Regina’s presence offended her. “You got so comfortable being an omega so fast. I thought… I thought you would hold onto your anger, like when you were the Evil Queen.”

Regina shook her head. “I have no reason to be that angry. I have a mate, a child, a sister, a niece, a best friend, and whatever the hell Lily might be when she’s not getting on my nerves about how I never killed Snow White.”

“She’ll be using that one against you for years,” Maleficent said.

“She’s lucky she’s your daughter and for some reason that makes me think she’s adorable,” Regina commented. Even though she met Lily as an adult and someone who Emma despised, Regina could only see her as Maleficent’s daughter now. And, for some reason, that made her see Lily as someone so much younger than she really was.

Maleficent smiled. “I really wish our circumstances were slightly different. I’d like your family to be the way it is, but for Lily to be whatever you imagine, so she could play with Henry.”

Zelena groaned. “Oh, vomit. You might as well be her sister.”

“Is that part of the problem?” Maleficent asked, tilting her head slightly. It was a possibility. Zelena would always be upset over Regina’s relationship with Maleficent.  

Zelena sighed and her shoulders slumped. Regina sighed, too, and moved to Zelena’s side. She wrapped her in a hug, even petting Zelena’s hair.

“Zelena, you are my sister. We don’t have a choice in the matter in the sense that you chose your family, but we also do have a choice because we could’ve easily fell apart over so many things. Instead, we chose each other and chose to be the family no one thought we could be. Hell, we didn’t think we could be at first. I want to be there for you, with you. I don’t want you to ever be alone again. If you feel alone now because you’re struggling with your status, just say so. You don’t have to snap at me, even though I know snapping is what we all do best,” Regina said.

“To be fair, I do become a dragon,” Maleficent remarked.

“That’s not an excuse.” Regina rested her cheek in Zelena’s hair. “You don’t have to be okay with being an omega, but don’t be resentful of me for being comfortable with it or over my relationship. No matter what happens, I love you.”

Zelena relaxed against her, but did not say anything in return. Regina did not expect her to. Even as their relationship improved and they got closer, Zelena never uttered anything that came close to how she directly felt about Regina. Still, her behavior, her desire to be around Regina all the time, and even her jealousy of Regina having other relationships spoke more about how Zelena felt than words could.

“Your heart is bigger than I ever imagined,” Zelena mumbled.

“It expands whenever I meet someone worthy of letting in,” Regina replied. She did not think her heart was so big, but she understood how precious loved ones were. She did not want to lose anymore and she was learning how to hold on without breaking people.

“Can I vomit now?” Maleficent said with a sneer.

“Can we go back to being drunk and eating chocolate?” Regina countered. It was all she wanted and they had to go turn things about emotions.

Bullets seemed to be dodged and they went back to drinking. Regina felt like this was probably what normal friendships in this realm felt like, if movies were to be believed. Even if that was not the case, she was more than happy to have the few friends she had and her sister, even if Zelena was annoying.

“So, what are you going to do if you or Lily want to bring someone back here one day?” Zelena asked Maleficent. 

“I don’t know. What are you going to do when Robbie starts dating?” Maleficent countered with a grin.

“I don’t know. I’ll see what Regina does once Henry presents,” Zelena replied. 

Regina groaned. “I’m never going out with any of you again. I just want to drink and eat chocolate. Why is that too much to ask?”

Zelena nodded. “This chocolate is top notch, though.”

“Yes, now can we enjoy it?” Regina replied. Thankfully, Zelena ate more chocolate and did not say anything for a while. Maleficent kept that up by making sure the wine continued to flow.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma woke with a start as Regina flopped down in bed. Emma laughed to herself as she took in the sight of her partner. Regina was still fully clothed and Emma could detect the light scent of alcohol coming from her. Emma grabbed her phone and checked the time. It was almost two in the morning.

“Well, I don’t need to ask if you had a good time. I can smell that,” Emma said.

“I’m not as drunk as you think,” Regina replied.

“And that’s why you didn’t get undressed.”

Regina made a noise and Emma smiled to herself. She moved to help Regina out of her clothing. Regina did not put up any resistance. Emma gathered Regina in her arms and cuddled her close after getting her naked. Regina put her head on Emma’s shoulder. Emma kissed her forehead.

“Where’s Zelena?” Emma asked.

“Guest room. We didn’t want to move Robbie, even if it was just to teleport. And… well, we might be a little drunk.”

Emma snickered. “You don’t say. I never would’ve guessed.” She kissed the top of Regina’s head.

“But, I’m not as drunk as you think.”

“You said that already. I don’t really care how drunk you are. I’m glad you had fun and you made it back safe… and I’m on the fence if I’m happy Zelena made it back. I mean, sure, Robbie’s probably grateful, but she could forget Zelena eventually.”

Regina pushed herself up a little to look Emma in the eye. “Don’t do that tonight, please.”

“Tough sister night?”

“Zelena had a bad night, but not the whole night. She needed to be reminded she is loved. Speaking of that, I love you.”

Emma scoffed. “I know you love me.”

“I don’t tell you enough.”

“You tell me all the time.”

“Yes, but that’s usually while we’re making love. I want to tell you in the quiet moments, too.”

Emma gave her a little squeeze. “You tell me all the time, well beyond the quiet moments. You tell me when you make my favorite food. You tell me when you snuggle in close to me. You tell me when trust me to watch Robbie or be with Henry by myself. You tell me all the time.”

Regina let loose a pleased purr. “You tell me all the time, too. That’s why I don’t mind doing little omega things for you. How were things with Robbie?”

“Good. Ruby came over and we watched her together. By the time she went down for the night, Henry came in. Ruby stuck around until about eleven. Henry went to bed around that time. I watched a movie, waiting up for you, but then went to bed about an hour ago.”

“You like watching Robbie, don’t you?”

“I do. She’s cool. Are we sure she didn’t fall out of the sky? I mean, how could Zelena and Robin Hood make a tiny human that cool?” Emma inquired.

Regina pinched her side. “Hey, leave my sister be.”

“Ow! I thought you loved me. Pinching is not a form of love.”

“Teasing my sister isn’t either.”

“You tease my mom all the time.”

Regina scoffed. “Your mother is insufferable.”

“And sometimes your sister is the same. We both come with annoying baggage, but love each other just the same.”

“I do love you.”

“I know.” Emma wondered if drunk-Regina often repeated herself. She could learn to like it. She would not mind seeing drunk-Regina every now and then. Regina deserved a chance to cut loose and enjoy herself, even if it was with Maleficent. Not that Emma wanted to think about Maleficent. “Why did Zelena need to be reminded she’s loved? You let her get away with everything now. You’d think that’d be enough.”

“She has issues I don’t want to discuss.”

“Did she hit on Maleficent and get turned down?”

Regina chuckled. “I wouldn’t even want to imagine that. They already snipe at each other like an old married couple.”

Emma blew out a raspberry. “You say that about me and Lily, too, which is gross by the way.”

Regina snickered. “I know. I’ve been told I’m evil.”

“Don’t sound so satisfied about it.” For all her scolding, Emma ran her hand across Regina’s thigh and settled on her ass.

“I can’t help it. I love you.”

“Those two things don’t even go together. I think you need to go to sleep.” Emma kissed the top of Regina’s head again. “I’m glad you had a good night, even if something happened with Zelena.”

“It was good, even though Zelena doesn’t understand.”

“Doesn’t understand what?”

“That I love you. Haven’t you been listening? She doesn’t understand I love you, but Maleficent is happy for me because she’s a good friend.”

Emma held in a groan. She did not want to talk about or even think about Maleficent being a “good friend.” She definitely did not want to think about Maleficent being a good friend with her drunk partner. _I’m not jealous. I have nothing to be jealous of. Regina loves me. She could’ve had Maleficent if she wanted, but she chose me_.

“I’m going to show you how much I love you in the morning,” Regina mumbled into Emma’s shoulder.

“Oh, chocolate chip pancakes? No, no, wait, a blowjob, then chocolate chip pancakes,” Emma teased.

“Make fun all you like, but when I serve you chocolate chip pancakes in bed and give you oral while you eat them, then we’ll see who’s laughing.”

“I don’t think either of us will be laughing in that situation, babe. I also think you’re tired. Go to sleep. We can talk in the morning.”

“Okay. Love you.” It was like Regina was hanging up a phone. She was also out after that.

Emma smiled and ran her fingers through Regina’s hair. She doubted Regina would get up in the morning to do anything, as she was definitely drunker than she thought she was. It was all right. Regina deserved the fun. Emma hoped whatever happened with Zelena was water under the bridge because as annoying as Zelena was, the sisters loved each other and loved being sisters. It was good for both of them as well.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma wished she had better culinary skills at times like this, but she was pretty good and she felt like Regina would appreciate the gesture of breakfast in bed more than the food she was served. Oatmeal, a bagel with cream cheese and jam, and that gourmet coffee Regina loved so much along with water and headache pills. Best of all, Robbie, who wanted to ride on the tray for whatever reason. Emma had no problem holding her up along with the tray.

“Auntie!” Robbie howled as soon as Emma set the tray down.

Regina woke with a start, but did not rattle the tray thanks to the weight of Robbie. As she settled back into the pillow, she had to notice Robbie because a smile worked its way onto her face. Emma eased back into bed next to her.

“What’s all this?” Regina asked.

“Breakfast and a Robbie in bed. The Robbie might eat the breakfast, though.” Emma reached out and just missed Robbie’s hand as she poked her finger into the cream cheese and jam.

“Well, yes, if the Emma doesn’t stop her,” Regina remarked as she pushed herself up into a sitting position. Emma took that moment to grab Robbie up and sit her between the two of them. Regina put half of the bagel to her mouth and let her nibble it. “Has Zelena gotten up yet?”

Emma shook her head. “I peeked in on her. She’s face down in the pillow, but still breathing.”

Regina made a noise. “Henry?”

“Just in his room writing. We can have a lazy Sunday.”

Regina nodded and turned her attention to her oatmeal. “Did you make Robbie some?”

“She ate a whole bowl with me before we came up here. Well, she ate her own bowl, but I had one, too,” Emma replied.

Regina smiled and had a spoonful. “You’ve improved on the milk and sugar ratio.”

“Just for you. Me and Robbie basically ate bowls of sugar. I put marshmallows in it and everything.” Emma grinned.

Regina sighed. “You’re so good with her.”

“You sound sad about it.”

“Because you clearly deserve another child and I can’t give you one.”

Emma frowned. “You already gave me one and he’s freaking awesome. And, you’re open to try again when we’re both ready. For right now, enjoy your breakfast. I’m really happy.” That was not a lie. She doubted she had ever been so content with life before. Even if she and Regina did not have another baby, they were still a family.

“Thank you for taking care of me,” Regina said.

Emma smiled. “That’s what I’m here for. I’m your alpha, right? I gotta take care of you.”

Regina leaned over and gave her a small kiss. “You are an amazing alpha and you do a great job taking care of me.”

Emma felt pride bloom in her chest and her inner alpha roared. She did not have a chance to bask in the feeling as Robbie was about to dive on the breakfast tray. Emma caught her just in time. She breathed a sigh of relief and Regina chuckled, amused by her adventurous niece.

“You sure you want a pup?” Regina asked with a teasing smile.

Emma snorted and rolled her eyes. “I got this one, just enjoy your food.”

Regina did just that while Emma tried to wrangle Robbie. It was a chore, but Robbie settled when Regina shared more food. Just as Regina finished, Henry poked his head in, as if he sensed he was missing out on family time. He laid down in the bed without saying a word and turned on the TV. It was cool until Zelena appeared in the room, thankfully on Regina’s side of the bed, complaining of a headache. Regina shut her up with headache pills and Henry found a movie they all liked. It was still a lazy Sunday and not as weird as Emma would have thought with Zelena in her bed.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the end.


	6. That Magic Moment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own these characters; Disney/ABC does.
> 
> Public Service Announcement: Regina and Emma don’t even leave the bed in this chapter. You’re welcome.

 

6: That Magic Moment

Thanksgiving had come and gone and Christmas was on the way. Thanksgiving had been a wonderful, family filled affair, hosted at the now Swan-Mills house, even though Regina and Emma had not exchanged marks or gotten married. It was just seen as their house now and signs of that was everywhere in the place. Rumple had shown up for the gathering, Belle practically yanking him around. But, at one point, he smiled and he made sure to eat his fill. He might come around yet.

The cold had set in and snow had fallen several times. It was one day when Regina convinced Emma to come Christmas shopping with her that she knew what was coming. Emma met her in the shopping district and smelled like heaven on Earth. When they greeted each other with a kiss, it took all of Regina’s self-control to keep from licking Emma’s lips, collecting her taste and aroma. 

From the way Emma could not stop touching Regina, she suspected she smelled just as delicious to Emma. They tried to make it through the shopping, but found it impossible, ultimately distracted by each other. So, Regina went about making preparations for what was next, including having Henry stay with his grandparents. It was all right on time. It seemed like it took Emma by surprise, though.

“Regina, I’m hot. Why am I so hot?” Emma groaned into her pillow as she woke in the middle of the night.

Regina licked her lips, quite happy with Emma being awake, as she had been equally as hot for over an hour now. It did not help that Emma worked up a sweat in her sleep and it enhanced her smell, which stuck to the roof of Regina’s mouth. “Rut.”

“Rut?” Emma echoed the word like she had no clue what it was. It would probably take her brain a moment to catch on. She opened her eyes and turned to stare at Regina. “Heat?”

“You mean you don’t smell that?” Regina could hardly believe that. Emma’s scent was so powerful, she felt like Emma became infused with her soul on every inhale.

Emma buried her nose in Regina’s neck. “You smell so good.” She pulled Regina to her and kissed her neck. “Fuck, you’re hot. Are you okay?”

Regina was surprised by Emma’s ability to notice her body temperature had spiked, but then again, she could tell Emma’s body was overheated as well. Emma moved over Regina and caressed her cheek with one hand, like she was checking on Regina. Regina smiled and brought her hands to Emma’s sides, enjoying the feel of her partner, even with the tank top in the way.

“Kiss me, please,” Regina requested. She needed to feel Emma against her.

“You never have to ask,” Emma replied and leaned down, pressing her lips to Regina’s.

Regina sighed into the kiss and heard Emma moan like she ate something scrumptious. Regina pulled Emma down to her, wanting to feel the full weight of her alpha pressed against her. Emma gave into her desire and their bodies met. Regina expected to feel a fervent need to tear them both out of their clothing, but again, she felt content with Emma’s presence and secure with Emma’s weight. It was like the perfect moment, like Emma’s presence would sustain her throughout the rest of her life.

They kissed leisurely for long minutes, lips and tongue moving together as their hands caressed each other as they had all the time in the world. She was not sure which one of them started removing their clothes, but they slowly peeled each other out of their tops. Well, Regina was only in her usual slip, so she was nude once that was gone. Emma got out of her boxer-briefs so quickly, the sound of the fabric ripping echoed through the bedroom. Neither of them cared.

“Can I?” Emma asked.

Regina looked her dead in the eye. “You never have to ask.” Emma had her eternal consent. She trusted this woman with everything — her life, her heart, her soul, and her child. Emma had all of her and she knew Emma would do her best to care for all of her.

Emma did not reply, like she usually would, ask questions, do a double-check any of that. Regina was glad, as she needed Emma like she needed air at the moment. Emma leaned down, renewed their kiss, and Regina wrapped her arms around Emma’s neck, trying to pull her closer. They could never be as close as Regina wanted at the moment, especially when Emma had to reach between them and line herself up.

When Emma pushed inside, glided in really from how obscenely wet Regina was, Regina broke their kiss, throwing her head to the side to moan. Emma joined her, moaning until Regina was full and every part of her body sang praises to the woman on top of her. She dug her nails into Emma’s back, anchoring Emma to her, not that she needed to.

“Fuck, you always feel so fucking good,” Emma said, hips pumping already.

“That’s you, my love. Take me now,” Regina ordered.

Emma nodded, as if she was not already fucking Regina at pretty good pace. Emma moved faster, now hammering into Regina, like she wanted to pound her through the mattress. Regina would not have complained if she did. The sound of their skin slapping together echoed through the room and the sound turned Regina on enough to make her even wetter. Emma groaned and shifted, changing the angle to go even deeper and faster.

“Gonna make a beautiful baby,” Emma whispered in her ear.

The thought made Regina arch her back, pressing herself against Emma’s warm skin. “Yes, let’s have a baby.” She would have a million babies with Emma. They would all be cute and perfect and Emma would love them with all of her heart.

Emma moved to kiss Regina for all she was worth, as if she had not expected Regina to agree. Regina clung to Emma and kissed her back. Maybe this would be the time they would have another baby. Maybe Regina could get pregnant. Maybe their love could beat the magic. It would be a fairy tale ending. The ending Emma deserved.

“Oh, fuck!” Regina clutched Emma more as she hit the perfect spot inside of her. “Yes, Emma, right there!”

Emma grunted and moved with even more energy, lips falling to Regina’s neck. “You smell so good.” She inhaled deeply. “Spread wider,” she requested. “Spread wider and I’ll fuck you just right, put a pup right inside of you.”

That sounded like heaven on Earth, so Regina did as asked. Pleasure shot through her as it felt like Emma went deeper somehow. She felt Emma everywhere, even at the roots of her hair, ecstasy did not even cover it. Emma was part of her.

Emma’s mouth remained at her neck, kissing, nuzzling. The simple graze of her teeth at Regina’s pulse point proved to be too much. Regina cried out as her orgasm rained down on her with unexpected fervor. It was storm of pleasure in her body. There would be claw marks in Emma’s back at the end of this, but that had to be expected.

Emma did not stop, did not change pace, pounding into Regina with everything she had. Even as Regina tried to shift to ride out her pleasure, Emma took hold of her thigh, making sure to keep her open. Regina’s body bounced with each move from Emma and her first orgasm bled into a second that was powerful enough to make her lose focus for longer than she liked. It was like all she could do was feel, like she was out of her body, experiencing nothing but rapture around her. She was not sure how long she was like that, but it could have been all eternity and she would not have minded.

Regina regained enough of her senses to feel Emma’s knot nudging at her. Her breathing increased well past the point of panting, sheer anticipation driving her wild. Emma would come inside her, knot her, and they would hopefully have babies. Gods, she wanted babies. She wanted Emma’s babies.

“Take my knot,” Emma growled in her ear.

“I want your knot. I want your pups,” Regina replied in a breath.

Emma groaned and shoved, her knot joining the rest of her. Regina was certain her eyes rolled up in the back of her head as soon as Emma was fully inside. She lost track of everything, drifting in the space of Emma, the joy of Emma. When she finally came down from her high, she realized she was on top of Emma. Emma must have rolled them over. Sighing, Regina settled on Emma’s chest as Emma stroked her back.

“You did so good taking my knot,” Emma whispered, kissing the top of Regina’s head.

“I want your babies.” Regina sighed again as she felt Emma still spurting inside of her.

Emma hummed. “Pups. Gonna give you pups.” One hand wandered next to Regina’s breast and played with her nipple, as she often did when they were naked and she needed to occupy her hands.

“Family.” That was what Emma gave her, would give her. Family.

“Yes, family. Beautiful family.” 

“Do you ever imagine what kind of pups we’d have?” Regina asked as Emma flicked her nipple. Waves of pleasure wafted through her.

“I’ve pictured another little boy, like Henry. He’d probably run around a lot. We’d play in the backyard.”

Regina nodded against Emma’s chest. “It would be nice to see.” She would delight in the images. Maybe have dreams of it as she felt her body getting more and more tired.

“What about you?”

“I always wanted a big family. Here a big family is different than in the Old World. After I met you and carried Henry, I actually pictured having more of your babies. I imagined us having at least three.” 

Emma’s hips jumped. “Three? You want three babies with me?”

“At least. Do you think you could do that? Give me three babies?” 

“You know I will do everything in my power. Fuck.”

Regina was sure Emma managed another gush of semen into her. Maybe that was the shot to give them another baby. Maybe. Regina was not surprised she drifted off to sleep, feeling sated for the moment since Emma was inside of her, knot and all. Images of blond babies danced through her mind. Maybe one day.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma fell asleep when she noticed Regina was out and even though she was still inside of Regina, hard as ever, she would never do anything without Regina being conscious. She awoke in the same position, but sparks flying through her. Regina was stirring and moving above her. For a moment, Emma thought Regina did not realize they were still joined, but from the way Regina pushed down on her, Regina knew.

“Fuck, babe,” Emma said, hands going to Regina’s hips immediately.

“Yes, please,” Regina muttered into her chest, picking up speed.

Emma groaned as her hands slid to Regina’s thighs. “Feels so good.” Regina felt so good.

Regina did not say anything, pushing herself up to kiss Emma. Emma was more than happy to kiss back, loving the sensation of Regina’s lips and tongue with her own. With each move of her lips, each flicker of her tongue, Emma gripped Regina’s thighs harder and bounced her with more force. It was like Regina was swallowing her from both ends and she would gladly be devoured. She whined as Regina pulled away, depriving her of that marvelous mouth.

Emma would have felt utter desolation if only Regina had not sat up, bent her back, and took Emma even deeper. Emma howled the first time Regina came down on her at the new angle, consuming her. Emma had to let go of a long breath as her hands found Regina’s waist without any commands from her brain. Her hands did well as far as she was concerned. Regina’s skin somehow felt softer than usual and tingled every inch of Emma’s hands on her.

“Shit,” Emma hissed as her fingertips brushed against Regina’s breasts. She cupped one bouncing breast and then tugged on a hard nipple.

“More,” Regina said and it sounded like an order.

Inside of her, Emma could hear her inner alpha growl at being commanded about by her omega, but she ignored it. What the hell did her stupid inner alpha know? Regina wanted more, more of her. She did not care how Regina asked for it, demanded it, screamed for it. She would give Regina everything she desired and more. That was the kind of alpha she was.

Emma palmed Regina’s tempting breasts and somehow got harder as she felt nipples against her rough palms. She planted her feet firm on the mattress to give herself the leverage to drive into Regina with the same force Regina rode her with. Regina put her hands on Emma’s thighs for even more leverage and Emma was suddenly jealous of Regina’s horses. _Well, she’s riding me now and only me and has been for months_.

Emma could feel her release on the edge of her nerves and thought it was much too soon, but she felt Regina gripping and fluttering around her, making little noises she only made when she came let Emma know she could follow. Emma got a good grip on Regina and pumped her hips off of the bed like a madwoman until a roar ripped its way from her throat as she came with a jolt, pouring into Regina’s willing form. Her knot swell up quickly and she did not slow down to have it join the rest of her dick.

“Gimme, gimme, gimme,” Regina begged above her.

Emma was not sure if the plea was for her knot or for pups, but both sounded real nice. “I will,” she promised as she finally managed to get her knot it.

Regina cried out and fell back against Emma’s legs. Even though Emma wanted nothing more than to melt into the bed until she could fuck Regina again, she kept her legs up for Regina to stay reclined on her. They both panted and Emma could feel Regina twitch with each squirt from her.

“Oh, my god, we synced, didn’t we?” Emma just realized. It felt freaking amazing in ways she would never be able to describe. Hell, she could barely comprehend it. This was more than the pleasure of sex. She felt content and satisfied with life. She felt like Regina was wrapped around her, around every inch of her, every cell, and it made her feel like everything would be all right.

“We’ve had sex twice before the sun has come up. I think it’s safe to say we synced,” Regina replied, thumb stroking Emma’s thigh. She then leaned forward, enough to caress Emma’s heaving breasts.

Emma felt daring enough to give Regina a light smack to the part of her ass she could reach, which was more thigh than ass. “You keep being sarcastic and I might figure out how to pull out.”

Regina rolled her eyes and then rolled Emma’s nipple, earning a moan as ecstasy flared through her. A smirk lit up Regina’s eyes. “Good luck with that. I think it’s fair to say to satisfy both of us as soon as you can, you will fuck me again and like it.”

Well, that was not a lie. “We’re a lot more coherent than I expected for a sync.” This was very much not like her rut. Yes, she definitely wanted to and would fuck Regina until she was raw, but that was not much different from her usual mindset. Yes, she felt a need to stay buried inside of Regina and fill her, so they could have pups, but she was still aware of her surroundings. The world had not melted away.

“Agreed. I feared we’d be well beyond feral.” Regina flicked Emma’s nipple again.

Emma nodded. “Not to say I don’t want to flip you over and fuck you into the mattress, though.” Regina playing with her nipples only added to that. She was certain her nipples were way more sensitive than Regina’s or possibly she was more fascinated with the gems, as playing Regina’s or having her own touched never failed to turn her on more than she already was.

“Oh, no, it must be Tuesday.” Regina’s tone was beyond dry.

“Wow, I might need water from that one.” It was a little weird to make a joke right now. Emma did not expect having the brain power to do so.

Regina hummed. “We should eat and drink something. I might be able to remember my name and hold a conversation with you, but I have no desire to get off of your cock right now.” She might not have meant to be that honest as a blush flew up her face and down to her collarbones.

“Good since my knot is there and all.” It was nice to know Regina wanted to stay on her since she wanted to stay in Regina. To make a show of her words, she wiggled her hips and they both moaned. She let out a long breath. “Okay, that was a bad idea.”

Regina smirked. “For you maybe.” She rocked her hips and closed her eyes.

“What are you doing?” Emma had a feeling she could both loathe and love it.

Regina stated the obvious. “Fucking your knot.”

Emma gulped as Regina moved as much as she could and did exactly what she said. “Holy fucking shit…” Emma had never felt anything like this and she might never stop coming. Hot bolts of pleasure invaded her, centering in her knot, making it throb and pulse, as if it wanted to get bigger. Could it get bigger?

“Oh, Emma…” Regina moaned and sat up, enough to properly ride Emma.

“Fuck, Regina, are you really…?”

Regina braced herself with her hands on Emma’s abdomen and then moved as much as she could with an inflated knot lodged inside of her. Emma was not sure, but it felt like her heart exploded in her chest. Maybe she died early and this was Heaven and Hell rolled up into one. Either way, she clutched Regina around the waist, not sure if she wanted to stop her or help her move more.

“Fuck, Regina, that feels so fucking good,” Emma groaned, throwing her head back against the pillow. It was like her nerves were overloaded with the greatest sensation ever.

“Give me everything you have, Emma. I want it all. We can make a beautiful baby,” Regina said, hips moving faster, even with the limited range of motion.

“I will fucking give you everything as long as you don’t fucking stop,” Emma vowed, feeling like her muscles wanted to claw out of her body, but in a good way. She did not understand this and did not have the brain power to contemplate it too hard. How could this even end? She was already climaxing inside of Regina, which was why her knot was there. How did fucking her knot end?

That question was answered only seconds later. Apparently, her dick went from squirts to gushing like a geyser. She blew all at once and her knot felt like it was impossibly large. Regina yelped, more in pain than pleasure, and stopped moving. The sound made Emma’s eyes shoot right to Regina’s face.

“You okay?” Emma asked.

“I can’t move. Your knot is so big, I can’t move,” Regina replied, voice low with possible astonishment.

Emma snickered. “How’s that for underdeveloped?”

Regina’s eyes were wide as she tried to change her position. She winced and halted all movement. “Doctor Aye clearly doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Emma, you just came in me hard enough for me to feel it everywhere and I can’t move on your knot. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced this before.”

“Maybe it’s the sync.”

“Maybe.”

“And maybe we just made a baby.” Emma vaguely remembered having babies on the brain during her rut, but she felt more conscious of it now and still could not stop saying “baby” or “pup” every three seconds. It was weird, but not really.

“Perhaps.” Regina did not sound convinced and before they could get into that, Emma’s stomach rumbled.

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s almost time to get up anyway and you’ve done more than your part in working up an appetite.”

Emma scoffed. “I love that you think either of us is getting the hell out of this bed for anything beyond fucking up against the wall.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she marked that down as something they would definitely do today.

“I have no intentions of getting up. As I said, I have no desire to get off of you and I can’t get off of you now. I put overnight oatmeal in the fridge for us. I just need to be able to make a little hand gesture for the spell to transport the tumblers here.” Regina took a deep breath. “We might have to wait for your knot to go down.”

Emma should not feel proud, but she did. Her knot was so big Regina could not move and she had shot such a load into Regina that she felt it splash inside of her lover. Confidence settled right in her spine. It felt like a real possibility that she would get Regina pregnant this time around.

“Can I touch you?” Emma asked. She wanted to run her hands up and down Regina’s glowing skin, but did not want to risk hurting Regina since she could hardly move.

Regina nodded and Emma’s hand went right to her abdomen. Regina’s eyes fluttered shut and she purred as Emma caressed her. Emma felt like she might turn to liquid knowing she was the one getting those sounds out of Regina. Who else anywhere, in any realm had made Regina feel this good?

“I’m happy you let me touch you like this,” Emma said, reveling in the feel of Regina against her fingertips. Silk had nothing on Regina’s skin.

“If not you, then who?” Regina replied.

“I don’t get it sometimes. Why do you love me so much?”

Regina sat up a little and squinted as she eyed Emma. “Why do I love you so much?”

“Yeah. I mean, I get why you slept with me in the beginning. You were sad and thought my awkwardness was charming. I get why you had my pup. You wanted a pup, but why do you love me? There are times when I don’t even love me.” Those times were fewer as time went on, but Emma still did not understand. What was there about her that drew Regina in?

Regina sighed. “The moments where you don’t love you, I love you even harder. Let me ask the same question of you as I guarantee our answers are very similar. So, you tell me, why do you love me?”

Emma searched her mind for the most important answer, but there was so much. “I don’t think we have the time for it. I mean, there’s like a million little things.”

“I feel the same. Tell me a big thing.”

“Well, of course you gave me a beautiful baby.”

Regina smiled and there were some tears pricking her eyes. “And I feel like you gave me that beautiful baby.”

“You accept me for who I am. You know I’m not some sparking hero. I’m just a person who tries to do the right thing, but I’m a person, who can be selfish, clumsy, and I don’t have all the answers.” One of the things that drove Emma crazy about Storybrooke was how some of the people idolized her. She did not want to be worshipped. More often than not, she actually wanted to be left alone.

Regina’s eyes were so soft, like two pools of liquid chocolate. “And you might see where I’m going with this, beloved. You accept me for who I am. You don’t see me as the Evil Queen, a reformed villain, or even a hero as some around here seem to. You see I’m just a person who now tries to do the right thing. I’m a person who struggles sometimes with doing the right thing, who doesn’t understand what the right thing is sometimes, but I can be forgiving and loving if given a chance.”

Tears escaped Emma’s eyes. Maybe she was more of a white knight than she wanted to admit, at least for Regina. She wanted to protect Regina from all of the world’s evils because underneath all the wear and tear, battered and bruised, was probably the biggest heart ever. She would like to say three people wrecked that heart, but it was so much more. A world watched on, playing the audience, to the ruin of a beautiful heart and then participated in cutting it as it tried to heal. She wanted to help it heal.

“I love you so much,” Emma said.

Regina smiled, even as tears slid down her cheeks. “I know. I love you, too, even the idiot alpha part of you that’s thinking about how much you wanted to protect me from life.”

A smile tugged at Emma’s lips. “Am I that obvious?”

“Yes, but I also think the same thing, in a different way. I just want to tear through everyone whoever hurt you.”

Emma laughed. “I’d appreciate it.” In a weird way, she knew it would make her love Regina even more. Before she could say that, her stomach growled again. “Oh, man. Sorry.”

“It’s fine. I still can’t quite move to do the spell to get our breakfast.” Regina’s face fell and Emma’s heart sank, disliking the expression very much. She lightly ran her fingers up and down Regina’s thigh, making sure not to jostle her, trying her best to lift Regina’s spirits.

Regina relaxed enough after a couple of minutes to move her fingers for her spell. The overnight oatmeal appeared on the nightstand. Emma had never had overnight oats before living with Regina, but learned Regina could make pretty much anything taste good. She figured out what Emma liked best without Emma ever having to actually say.

“The bananas and almonds always surprise me,” Emma said.

“Would you like to share?” Regina asked.

“What’s mine is yours.”

Emma slowly moved her hand closest to the nightstand to get the first cup. She managed to grab it, but did not need to hold it. Regina took charge, moving enough to take the breakfast from her hand. She took the first spoonful and made a sound expressing how delicious the food was. Regina was lucky Emma’s knot was still inflated or she would have gotten hard and fucked Regina right there with her holding their breakfast.

“Open,” Regina said and put the next spoonful to Emma’s lips.

Emma did not even think as she opened her mouth and ate. On some level, she should have thought this was weird, but it did not feel that way. It felt familiar.

“You fed me during my rut,” Emma recalled. It should feel infantile, but she liked it. It made her feel special for some reason.

“You couldn’t have eaten if I didn’t,” Regina replied before taking the next spoonful for herself.

“It didn’t bother you?”

Regina arched an eyebrow. “Should it?”

Emma glanced away, uncertainty crawling through her. “Well, it’s kinda childish, right?”

“It’s always a delight to treat you. The annoying thing was you trying to have your way with me while I was trying to keep you alive.” Regina put another mouthful to Emma’s lips, making sure there was a good amount of banana and almond on the spoon.

Emma took it in, the food and the words. Her heart expanded in her chest. Regina wanted to treat her. No one ever wanted to treat her, but Regina did. Regina always made sure she was taken care of. She wanted to do the same.

“So, we’re out of bananas and almonds, I’m still hungry, and we’re still tied,” Emma pointed out.

“I am aware. I’m here, too. That one was yours. We still have my overnight oats,” Regina replied.

“It’s not the chia with raspberries, is it?” Emma made a face.

“I planned to split it with you, so no, it’s not the chia with raspberries, even though that is delicious and no one told you to try to be sneaky and eat my stuff when I wasn’t looking.”

“I was still hungry and you had food. Can you blame me? In fact, isn’t it more your fault for leaving food around unattended while I was hungry?” It was not unheard of for Emma to eat Regina’s food when she was not looking.

Regina glared at her enough to get her to grab the other mug. This one had peaches in it and Emma ate quickly as she felt her knot going down. Her energy was back up and so was her cock by the time they were done.

-8-8-8-8-

Syncing was as smooth as Doctor Aye and Doctor Alexander promised and it surprised Regina. Nothing ever went so smoothly for her, or Emma for that matter. For the moment, she would revel in it, especially as they switched positions. Regina got on her knees, as it was supposed to be the position omegas most readily conceived in. Emma had been promising her a baby all damn day. She needed to put some work into it as well if they were going to make that happen.

“Emma,” Regina moaned for what was probably the millionth time and the sun had not even set yet.

Emma entered Regina and growled. “Fuck, babe.”

Regina’s body sang the praises to Emma as she felt her everywhere once more. She pressed back against Emma, taking her as deep as she had been since this whole thing started. Emma took charge of her hips, trying control of the situation. Regina did not mind conceding the control, which she blamed on the omega hormones.

“Harder,” Regina ordered. Okay, maybe she could not cede all of the control. While elation burned every nerve, she knew Emma had it in her to light a fire that could not be matched, could not be doused. She reached behind her, grabbing some bit of Emma.

Emma predictably slapped Regina’s ass in warning. The smack added fuel to the fire, but only briefly. Regina did not have to make a second entreat, though. To say Emma jackhammered into her would have been an understatement. The fire under her skin erupted, flared throughout her body and she could not keep herself up right. She fell into the pillow, but pushed her ass into the air. Emma adjusted and shoved into Regina to the point where Regina felt like her head was going to explode. She scratched at the bed, pulling at the sheets.

“Fuck, love, fuck.” Regina panted and pressed back as much as she could. She felt like she might come out of her skin and it would be amazing if she did. Everything about this felt amazing.

“It’s good?” Emma asked, as if she did not know. She gave Regina’s ass another slap. “You feel so good around my dick. Your hot fucking pussy just hugging my dick.”

Regina groaned, feeling the words tingle across her skin. She usually did not get off on dirty talk. She did the dirty talk and Emma got off on it. Now, she understood why. _I’m so gone and I want to be even more so_.

“You like that, huh? You like knowing how good you feel around my cock? Choking my cock?” Emma asked.

Regina let loose a sob and pushed back against Emma more, trying to take her deeper. Emma leaned down, panting in Regina’s ear as she kept plunging in and out of Regina at an inspired pace. She licked the shell of Regina’s ear and the feel of her tongue zapped Regina of whatever had her holding herself up. She ended up face down on the mattress. That did not stop Emma.

Emma planted her hands on the sides of Regina’s shoulders and drove into Regina, who simply moaned into the pillow. Nothing felt as perfect as Emma moving inside of her. And then there was a graze of Emma’s teeth along her shoulder and she had to amend that thought. Nothing felt as perfect as Emma moving inside of her and her teeth teasing along Regina’s neck and shoulder, like Emma was contemplating marking her.

In the back of her mind, Regina knew they discussed holding off on marking and mating, but at the moment she did not care. She would let Emma sink her teeth into her neck or shoulder and display the mark for the world to see. She belonged to Emma. She was Emma’s omega. She was Emma Swan’s mate.

Somehow, the idea of being mated to Emma Swan was even more powerful than the feel of Emma fucking her. Emma was inside of her in so many different ways. Her body erupted again. She lost count of how many times she had climaxed with Emma’s name on her lips, but one more could not hurt. As she drowned in a haze of pleasure, ramped up as Emma continued to move, she sighed and waited for the moment it would get infinitely better.

Feeling the press of Emma’s knot had never felt so good until today. Yes, it was always an anticipated, expected gift during their coupling, but today, each time she felt it, it was like Christmas morning. She keened and cooed when Emma drove her knot inside and she moved on it, wanting a repeat of early, always now.

“Fuck,” Emma hissed as she tipped over onto her side, pulling Regina with her.

“You like that, hmmm?” Regina pressed back into Emma.

“Goddamn!” Emma groaned, like all coherent thought had left her mind. Regina snickered to herself and wiggled more.

Emma panted in her ear and she threw her leg over Emma’s hip for more force. Emma groaned and moaned and pressed a palm to Regina’s stomach, needing to brace herself against something maybe. Regina whimpered as she felt the knot expanding, ballooning inside of her. She did not stop, though, needing to feel Emma explode inside of her again. Much to her surprise, the hand on her stomach eased down to her clit, rubbing gentle circles to help her relax.

Regina felt like her insides melted, pooling around her core. She pushed against Emma more and then got another treat of desired liquid. Emma gushed to the point she could feel it splash inside of her. Emma cried out, but her fingers did not stop on Regina’s clit. Regina was not sure when they both stopped moving, but eventually they were still and their heavy breathing was the only sound echoing through the room.

“You hungry yet?” Emma asked, her voice right in Regina’s ear. The question was followed by light kisses just behind Regina’s ear.

“You want lunch?” Regina guessed. While she was hungry, Emma was always the hungrier between them. They had been entwined with each other for several hours since managing breakfast.

“Well, we do have about twenty minutes like this.” They discovered when Emma exploded all at once, even though her knot was bigger, it went down faster, giving them more time to spend making love. Of course, it also gave them the opportunity to work up a hunger quicker.

“I made sandwiches, cold pasta, and salads, like I did for your rut.”

“I know. I peeked in the cooler when you brought it up. What are we having first? Are there bologna sandwiches?”

“Yes, but I won’t be eating that. If you want a bologna sandwich, that’s on your own.”

Emma sighed. “Fine. What highbrow sandwich do you have? A cucumber sandwich?”

“Must you mock everything? I said nothing about your sandwich meat made of cow hooves and New York pigeons, yet here you go making fun of my upbringing.”

Emma whimpered. “Sorry.”

Regina reached around and caressed Emma’s hip. “Don’t be sorry. Be considerate.”

“I know. I know. Sometimes, I’m just playing with you. You know that, right?”

“I do, but it’s a little off-putting for you to make fun of my upbringing. I would never do that to you.” Regina knew it was a defense mechanism that Emma had, but Emma had no reason to be defensive around her.

“That’s true.” Emma sighed and kissed the back of Regina’s neck. “I do that when I’m uncomfortable sometimes. I think about how you were a princess or whatever and I’m me. Why the hell would royalty want me? I mean, I know by birth I’m a princess. The ugly duckling turned swan or whatever, but I bet that swan still feels like a duck. Did that make sense?”

Regina hated that she understood what Emma meant. “You can feel like a duck all you want, but it’s not fair of you to judge me for not being a duck, especially when I didn’t choose my lifestyle any more than you chose  yours. You know why I don’t use your lifestyle against you, beyond the fact that I feel responsible?” She did not mean to say that last bit, as it was too true for the air, but now it was out there.

“You know I’d still live through all of it if it got me this.”

Regina shook her head. “I’d never cast the Curse if I knew you’d live through that. Yes, I’d not cast the Curse, even if it cost me us and it cost me Henry.” Seeing Emma sitting in a pool of her own blood so many months ago, willing to mutilate herself because an alpha had made Emma feel so bad about who she was, changed Regina more than it changed Emma more than likely. If she could go back in time, she would never cast the Curse and let Emma grow up as spoiled as humanly possible.

“You’d give up Henry for me?”

“Emma, the day you tried to cut off your penis, you might not think about it, but you almost killed yourself. You didn’t have an escape plan. You didn’t know someone would show up. You were content to sit there in your own blood and die. I know that kind of pain all too well.”

Emma inhaled sharply, wiggling her knot enough for it to make Regina wince. “You… you’ve tried to kill yourself?”

Regina licked her lips and swallowed down tears. She could not cry every time they stopped making love and had a talk. “Three times, even though I don’t think the third time was real while Tink insists I was trying to kill myself. The first time, I was only ten. I threw myself off of my horse while jumping some rocks. I successfully broke my arm, but didn’t escape my mother. I wanted very much to not be with her anymore. I know that pain. People often think if you grow up wealthy or royalty, you don’t have any problems, but my mother hurt me so much, I wanted to escape any way I could.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. Just know that upbringing doesn’t make you more or less worthy. We grew up on opposite ends, but were hurt just the same. This is why I make things that come from your childhood that brought you happiness or that you like, even if the noble in me will scream about how common and lowbrow the food is.”

“You never say it to my face.”

“No, because that has to do with your upbringing. I will say I worry over your health because, again, what honestly is in bologna?” Regina did not want to think about it, but whenever she made bologna sandwiches, she imagined it was all unused parts of any domesticated animal and whatever unfortunate rat was near the processing machine.

“I love how much you want to take care of my health.”

“Does that mean you don’t want the sandwich?” Regina hoped she would never have to make another bologna sandwich in her life.

Emma scoffed. “You’re kidding, right? You made that sandwich with love and I’m starving. I want bologna, but I also want whatever you’re having.”

“You just want me to feed you.”

Emma snickered. “Who wouldn’t want that?”

“Then, maybe you shouldn’t knot me while you’re behind me again.”

Emma scoffed at the very idea. As an alpha, Emma probably instinctively liked positions where she was behind Regina, as she could go deeper and supposedly there were better chances for pregnancy. Personally, Regina liked any position she could see Emma’s face. She felt like she could see Emma’s love for her in her eyes. She was not sure if it was an omega instinct or just her as she felt connected to Emma when they could lock eyes.

“When your knot goes down, we’re switching,” Regina said as she made a sandwich appear. She passed it back to Emma and then made her own pasta salad appear. She enjoyed a few bites before Emma shifted, moving her knot and pulling a soft groan from Regina as unexpected pleasure shot through her. “Excuse you, I’m trying to eat.”

“Gimme some pasta.”

“You have an entire sandwich.” There was no way Emma ate that whole thing already.

“Yeah, but I want some pasta, too.”

Regina growled, but moved, ever so slowly, to give Emma some pasta. She could hear the smile in Emma’s humming as she ate the pasta and then went back to her sandwich. The sandwich was gone before Regina even had three forkfuls of her salad. They split the salad from then on and finished before Emma’s knot went down.

-8-8-8-8-

Emma counted many firsts with Regina, but being forced to stay hydrated while keeping Regina balanced as they sat up and fucked like bunnies was not a first she expected. Thanks to living with Regina, she knew the importance of staying hydrated, as Regina never missed a moment to lecture someone about something in the house. So, she did not mind the bottle of water to her lips, but she spilled a lot of it as she and Regina moved together. She also made sure to press her palm against Regina’s back to help keep her upright.

Eventually, Emma stopped caring about being hydrated and grabbed the bottle from Regina. Before Regina could object, she kissed Regina and set the bottle down on the nightstand. Regina returned the kiss and put her hands on Emma’s shoulders, bracing herself to move with more intent.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” Emma hissed as Regina’s nails dug into her back as Regina bounced up and down on her. “Fuck, fuck, fuck…” She could not think of any other words. Surely, that covered it, though, right?

Regina did not say anything about the broken kiss, just moved her lips to Emma’s neck. Feeling Regina’s lips, tongue, and teeth against her pulse made Emma’s blood boil. She gripped Regina around the waist and tried to increased Regina’s movement as she managed to move even faster. Regina obliged and Emma felt like she would lose her mind in a blaze of ecstasy. Her hand drifted to Regina’s ass and she squeezed, making Regina moan. And Regina returned the favor, nipping on Emma’s earlobe and making her moan.

All too soon, they both climaxed. Emma fell to the mattress at a diagonal, taking Regina with her. Regina sighed as she rested her head on Emma’s chest, listening to Emma’s wild heartbeat. Emma carefully reached for the water again, gulping down as much as she could. She then put the bottle to Regina’s lips. Regina drank the rest of the water while dragging her fingertips up and down Emma’s sides, making her purr. She dropped the bottle on the floor and mirrored Regina’s actions.

Emma felt a little dimple against Regina’s skin. She was quite familiar with it. The remains of stretch marks.

“Wanna compare battle scars?” Emma asked with a little laugh. Doctor Alexander thought they would do that, but it was unnecessary. They knew about each mark on the other’s body.

“Why? Do you have a new one I don’t know about?” Regina countered, fingers questing around her torso and sending sparks through her. “You couldn’t have gotten injured in the past few days and it slipped by me.” 

Emma wiggled a bit, earning a whine from Regina. Emma was about to say something, but then it seemed like Regina wanted to teach her a lesson and moved on her knot again. _Fuck!_ That felt so good. She honestly did not know how her brain could even process such pleasure. She exhaled through loudly through her mouth as she tried to keep her wits about her. It was impossible. She felt like her brain exploded with her knot.

“Should we drink more water?” Emma wondered aloud. She was not sure why she said that, but she chalked it up to having almost no brain power now. Maybe it was because she could see part of the puddle of water she caused from dropping the water bottle.

“I don’t think I can conjure more right now.”

Emma smiled a little. “You sound sleepy.”

“We’ve been at this for twenty hours. I think I’m entitled.”

“No, don’t go to sleep. Soon as my knot goes down, I wanna fuck you on the headboard.”

Regina grunted. “I think we both know you don’t have the strength to pick me up right now. It’s almost midnight and we have been at it for twenty hours.” Emma wanted to prove Regina wrong, but Regina fell asleep and she followed.

When they woke up, Emma remembered the headboard, but did not have the will to pull out of Regina long enough to pick her up at that moment. Instead, they made slow love in the position they woke up, on their sides. Pasta salad and lemonade served as breakfast. It was delicious, but had nothing on being inside of Regina.

“Does pasta count as a breakfast food?” Emma mused before Regina shoved a forkful of food in her mouth.

“If it’s the first thing you eat, yes. I’m sure there’s some culture on Earth somewhere that eats pasta for breakfast. Besides, there are eggs in this, so it’s almost breakfast,” Regina replied.

“You’ve thought of everything.”

“I’ll thank you not to take that sarcastic tone while inside of me and expecting me to feed you.” Regina ate the next forkful herself, even though it was Emma’s turn.

Emma smiled and kissed the end of Regina’s nose. “That’s not fair. You take a sarcastic tone with me all the time.”

“You deserve it.”

“If I say I do, will you feed me?” Emma requested and she felt the fork at her lips as soon as she was done talking. She did not realize there were so many different ways to make pasta salad, but she noticed no one was the same as the other so far.

“How are you holding up? I noticed I’m not on the headboard.”

“You will be soon enough. I just gotta get my strength up and body ready to move. You know how I am when I wake up, even though this is the best way to wake up.” Emma smiled and sighed contently. “I want to wake up next to you for the rest of my life.”

Regina smiled back. “I never thought I’d feel that way about someone after Daniel’s death, but here we are. Do you have a first love, Emma?”

“Not really. I tend to think of Neal as a my first love, but sometimes I think Lily might have been. I’m not really sure how my sexuality works at this point, but either way it didn’t work out. Even when I dreamed a little with Neal of having a life with him, I always thought it wouldn’t work. Nothing ever worked for me. I think Lily took that from me, the idea that I could find someone and relate to them and be connected to them on a deep level. I tried again with Neal, but not the same way I tried with Lily. I hide things from him, like being an alpha. I didn’t fully trust him.”

“And you fully trust me?”

“With everything that’s in me. Every single thing.”

“Then, believe me when I tell you, you’re not a horrible alpha, like you seem to believe just because you are an alpha. You are a wonderful, amazing person, who happens to be an alpha. Like there are terrible people, who also happen to be alphas. There are wonderful people of all statuses and there are terrible people of all statuses. We both prove that stereotypes and titles sometime mean nothing. People are people.”

Emma sniffled. “I’m about to cry, not very macho alpha of me.” She had come to the conclusion that alphas came in all types herself, after thinking about them when she watched Robbie a while ago. “I’m kinda okay with it.”

“You are an amazing person. You helped heal my very damaged heart. You’re an amazing person.” Regina then fed her more food, as if to keep her from replying.

Emma accepted the pasta and chewed on the words as well. She did some alpha things, she knew, and it was nice to know Regina did not hold it against her. She would still do her best to keep any stupid alpha impulses at bay. Yes, there were some positive alpha traits, but she was still certain the bad outweighed the good.

“I’ll show you amazing.” Emma’s knot had finally gone down and they finished breakfast. She stood, lifted Regina, and put her on the headboard. “We’re gonna do it against the wall after this.” She leaned down, kissing Regina before she could respond.

-8-8-8-8-

Regina felt like she could get used to them being synced. Two days of love-making was not a bad deal, especially if they would eat and drink during that time. That alone made it better than going into heat or rut. The little conversations they had in between made her feel closer to Emma. Now, if only they could have made it to the shower, it would have been perfect. But, they could get a shower as soon as Emma got up.

“Think we made a pup?” Emma asked in a groggy tone. She ran her fingers up and down Regina’s spine. Regina was on top of her.

“It’s possible, but we shouldn’t get our hopes up,” Regina replied.

“I know. I wonder how this works with a pup. I mean, we were really coherent this time compared to heats and ruts, but I still wasn’t about to leave this bed for anything.”

Regina could agree with that. “I was curious about that as well and read up on it. Our sync would pause for at least two years if I became pregnant. I remember when I had Henry, I breastfed, so I didn’t want to take my potion for a while. My heat never came back, though. Apparently, a heat would stop for at least two years as well.”

“Will my rut stop?”

“Only if we’re mated. You have to remember as an alpha, you’re biological drive is to spread your seed.”

Emma groaned loudly. “Can you not?”

“Is it that I called you an alpha or said ‘spread you seed’?” Regina knew which one it was.

Emma groaned again. “Please, stop! Can we just go get our son and call it a day?”

“I would much rather take a shower, get something to eat, and clean up a little before we dare drag Henry back into the house,” Regina said. She could only imagine how the upstairs had to smell thanks to their sync.

“Funny, I just want to sleep for a day after we get him. I never thought that having sex for two days could be so exhausting. I didn’t notice it during my rut, but I’m tired.”

“Oh, you couldn’t keep up?” Regina smirked.

“If you packed some donuts in with our food, I’m sure I could.” Emma yawned. “Can we go back to sleep? I need a couple more hours.”

“We’re not tied together, so you can sleep, but I could love for you to join me in the shower.”

“I could do that in a few hours if we went back to sleep.”

Regina chuckled. “That’s how I know things are back to normal. Do you remember saying you wanted to fuck me against the wall when I wanted to go to sleep?” Emma had promised that all yesterday, but never got around to it.

“That still sounds like a good idea, but I’m a little sore and really tired. I’m gonna do that when I wake up and also fuck you in the shower as an added bonus.”

Regina had mercy on Emma and let her go back to sleep. She tucked her head under Emma’s chin and let Emma’s breathing relax her. This sync was wonderful, even if it was exhausting. She felt more connected to Emma than ever before and not just because she spent two days with Emma inside of her.

“This was nice, Regina. Do you think it’ll be better when we mate?” Emma asked in a low voice.

“I’ve seen in my research that it should be. The mating mark will release new hormones between us and connect us even more. We can ask our doctors more about it.”

Emma yawned. “I can’t wait. I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Regina was not sure Emma heard as she could tell from Emma’s even breathing that she was asleep. She could not wait for them to mate as well. Maybe they would have another baby or maybe they would not, but mating was something they could definitely do. They would have to talk about when they would do that, but they could save that for later on. Right now, they had come further together than they ever had with others. _Well, of course we have. We’re a family together_.

-8-8-8-8-

The End. 

As usual, thanks for reading my work. I hope you liked this. Back to my padded cell with me. Thanks again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you wanna see more of my fanfics, they're all at FFN under [StarvingLunatic](https://www.fanfiction.net/~starvinglunatic). If you wanna see some original stories, you can look at FP under [StarvingLunatic](https://www.fictionpress.com/u/576301/).
> 
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